BANCROFT 
LIBRARY 

O 

THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 


INDIANS. 

OFTH 


BY  GALE 


INDIANS 

OF 

THE    YOSEMITE    VALLEY 
AND    VICINITY 

Thier  History,  Customs  and  Traditions 

BY 
GALEN   CLARK 

Author  of  "Big  Trees  of  California,"  Discoverer  of  the  Mariposa 
Grove  of  Big  Trees,  and  for  many  years  Guardian 
of  the  Yosemile  Valley. 

With  an  Appendix 

of 
Useful  Information  for  Yosemite  Visitors 


ILLUSTRATED  BY 

CHRIS.  JORGENSEN 

AND    FROM    PHOTOGRAPHS 


YOSEMITE  VALLEY,   CALIFORNIA 

GALEN  CLARK 

1910 


Copyright  1904,  by  Galen  Clark. 
ALL  RIGHTS  RESERVED. 

FOURTH  EDITION 


Press  of 

Reflex  Publishing  Company 
Redondo  Beach,  Cal. 


BANCROFT 
LIBRARY 


TO  MY  FRIEND 

CHARLES  HOWARD  BURNETT 


Contents 


INTRODUCTION  AND  SKETCH  OF  THE 

AUTHOR ix 

CHAPTER 

I.      EARLY     HISTORY 1 

II.      EFFECTS   OF    THE   WAR 14 

III.  CUSTOMS    AND    CHARACTERISTICS 21 

IV.  SOURCES   OF   FOOD    SUPPLY 31 

V.      RELIGIOUS  CEREMONIES  AND  BELIEFS.  .  49 

VI.      NATIVE     INDUSTRIES 67 

VII.     MYTHS  AND  LEGENDS 76 

APPENDIX: 

Hints  to   Yosemite  Visitors 101 

Official      Table      of      Distances      and      Livery 

Charges    105 

Supplementary  Table  of  Distances 107 

Interpretation  of  Indian  Names 107 

Tables  of  Altitudes 110 

Names  of  Indian   Numerals Ill 

Indian  Words^  in  Common  Use Ill 

Tribes  Placed  on  Reservations  in  1850-51..    .  112 


of  Illustrations 


COVER   DESIGN Mrs.    Jorgensen 

FRONTISPIECE,  GALEN  CLARK .  .Taber 

PAGE 

YOSEMITE  FALLS,   Fiske 3 

AN  INDIAN  DANCER,  Boysen 8 

THREE    BROTHERS,    Foley 13 

CAPTAIN    PAUL,    Foley 17 

YOSEMITE  MOTHER  AND  PAPOOSE,   Boysen 20 

INDIAN   O'-CHUM,    Jorg-ensen 25 

YOSEMITE  MAIDEN  IN  NATIVE  DRESS,  Jorg-ensen  27 

A  YOSEMITE  HUNTER,  Jorgensen 32 

INDIAN    SWEAT    HOUSE,    Jorg-ensen 34 

CHUCK'-AH,   Mrs.   Jorg-ensen 39 

HO'- YAS   AND    ME-TATS',    Fiske 42 

A  WOOD  GATHERER,  Fiske 47 

A  YOUNG  YOSEMITE,  Dove 53 

LENA  AND  VIRGIL,   Boysen 55 

OLD  KALAPINE,  Boysen 62 

YOSEMITE    BASKETRY,    Boysen 66 

MRS.    JORGENSEN'S    BASKETS..  .    68 


viii  LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PAGE 

INDIAN  BEAD   WORK,   Fiske 70 

A  BASKET  MAKER,   Boysen 73 

MARY,   Boysen 79 

HALF  DOME,  Foley 84 

A  BURDEN  BEARER,   Fiske 88 

NORTH  DOME,   Foley 91 

EL  CAPITAN,  Foley 93 

BRIDAL  VEIL  FALL,  Fiske 97 


Airtfjnr 

ALEN  CLARK,  the  author  of  this  little 
volume,  is  one  of  the  notable  char- 
acters of  California,  and  the  one  best  fitted 
to  record  the  customs  and  traditions  of  the 
Yosemite  Indians,  but  it  was  only  after 
much  persuasion  that  his  friends  succeeded 
in  inducing  him  to  write  the  history  of  these 
interesting  people,  with  whom  he  has  been 
in  close  communication  for  half  a  century. 

The  Indians  of  the  Yosemite  are  fast 
passing  away.  Only  a  handful  now  remain 
of  the  powerful  tribes  that  once  gathered 
in  the  Valley  and  considered  it  an  absolute 
stronghold  against  their  white  enemies. 
Even  in  their  diminished  numbers  and  their 
comparatively  civilized  condition,  they  are 
still  a  source  of  great  interest  to  all  visi- 
tors, and  it  has  been  suggested  many  times 
that  their  history,  customs  and  legends 
should  be  put  in  permanent  and  convenient 
form,  before  they  are  entirely  lost. 

Many  tales  and  histories  of  the  California 
Indians  have  been  written  by  soldiers  and 


x  INTRODUCTION. 

pioneers,  but  Mr.  Clark  has  told  the  story 
of  these  people  from  their  own  standpoint, 
and  with  a  sympathetic  understanding  of 
their  character.  This  fresh  point  of  view 
gives  double  interest  to  his  narrative. 

Galen  Clark  comes  of  a  notable  family; 
his  English  ancestors  came  to  the  State  of 
Massachusetts  in  the  seventeenth,  century, 
but  he  is  a  native  of  the  Town  of  Dublin, 
Cheshire  County,  New  Hampshire,  born  on 
the  28th  day  of  March,  1814,  and  is  conse- 
quently nearly  ninety  years  of  age,  but  still 
alert  and  active  in  mind  and  body. 

He  attended  school  in  his  early  youth 
during  the  winter  months,  and  worked  on 
a  farm  during  the  summer,  leading  nearly 
the  same  life  which  was  followed  by  sc 
many  others  who  afterwards  became  fa- 
mous in  our  country's  history. 

Later  in  life  he  learned  chair-making  anc 
painting,  an  occupation  which  he  followec 
for  some  years,  when  he  removed  to  Phih 
delphia  and  subsequently  toNewYorkCitj 

Whilst  residing  in  New  York,  in  1853,  he 
resolved,  after  mature  reflection,  to  visit 
the  new  Eldorado.  His  attention  was  first 
.attracted  to  this  State  by  visiting  the  cek 


INTRODUCTION.  xi 

brated  Crystal  Palace  in  New  York,  where 
there  was  then  on  exhibition  quantities  of 
gold  dust  which  had  been  sent  or  brought 
East  by  successful  miners. 

Mr.  Clark  left  New  York  for  California 
in  October,  1853,  coming  via  the  Isthmus 
of  Panama,  and  in  due  time  reached  his 
destination.  In  1854  he  went  to  Mariposa 
County,  attracted  thither  by  the  wonderful 
accounts  of  the  gold  discoveries,  and  the 
marvelous  stories  he  had  heard  of  the 
grandeur  and  beauty  of  the  Yosemite  Val- 
ley and  the  surrounding  mountains. 

Upon  his  first  arrival  in  Mariposa,  he 
engaged  in  mining,  and  was  also  employed 
to  assist  in  surveying  Government  land  on 
the  west  side  of  the  San  Joaquin  Valley, 
and  canals  for  mining  purposes,  some  of 
which  passed  through  the  celebrated 
"Mariposa  Grant,"  the  subject  of  pro- 
longed and  bitter  litigation,  both  in  this 
country  and  in  Europe.  He  probably  knows 
more  about  the  actual  facts  concerning  the 
Mariposa  Grant  than  any  one  now  living, 
and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  some  day  he  may 
overcome  his  natural  repugnance  to  notor- 


xii  INTRODUCTION. 

iety,  and  give  to  the  public  the  benefit  of 
his  knowledge. 

In  the  year  1855  Mr.  Clark  made  his  first 
trip  into  the  Yosemite  Valley  with  a  party 
made  up  in  Mariposa  and  Bear  Valley. 

Eeturning  to  Mariposa,  he  resumed  his 
old  occupation  of  surveying  and  mining, 
and,  whilst  so  engaged,  by  reason  of  ex- 
posure, had  a  serious  attack  of  lung  trou- 
ble, resulting  in  severe  hemorrhages  which 
threatened  to  end  his  life. 

He  then  removed,  in  April,  1857,  to  the 
South  Fork  of  the  Merced  Eiver,  and  built 
a  log  cabin  in  one  of  the  most  beautiful  of 
our  mountain  valleys,  on  the  spot  where 
Wawona  now  stands.  He  soon  recovered 
his  health  entirely,  and,  though  constantly 
exposed  to  the  winter  storms  and  snows, 
has  never  had  a  recurrence  of  his  malady. 

Wawona  is  twenty-six  miles  from  Yosem- 
ite, and  at  that  time  became  known  as 
Clark's  Station,  being  on  the  trail  leading 
from  Mariposa  to  the  Valley,  and  a  noted 
stopping  place  for  travelers.  This  trail,  as 
well  as  the  one  from  Coulterville,  was  com- 
pleted to  the  Valley  in  1857,  and  the  trip  to 


INTRODUCTION.  xiii 

Yosemite  then  involved  a  stage  ride  of 
ninety-two  miles,  and  a  journey  of  sixty 
miles  more  on  horseback.  In  1874  and!875 
the  three  present  stage  roads  were  con- 
structed through  to  the  Valley. 

All  travelers  by  the  Eaymond  route  will 
remember  Wawona  and  the  surroundings ; 
the  peaceful  valley,  the  swift-flowing 
.Merced,  and  the  surrounding  peaks  and 
mountains,  almost  equaling  in  grandeur 
the  famous  Yosemite  itself. 

In  the  early  days  this  locality  was  an- 
nually visited  by  several  bands  of  Indians 
from  the  Chowchilla  and  Fresno  rivers. 
The  Indian  name  for  the  place  was  Pal- 
lah'-chun.  Whilst  residing  there  Mr.  Clark 
was  in  constant  contact  with  these  visiting- 
tribes;  be  obtained  their  confidence,  and 
retains  it  to  this  day. 

Whilst  on  a  hunting  trip,  in  the  summer 
of  1857,  Mr.  Clark  discovered  and  made 
known  to  the.  public  the  famous  Big  Tree 
Grove,  now  known  all  over  the  world  as  the 
"Mariposa  Grove  of  Big  Trees,"  belonging 
to  the  State  of  California.  On  this  expedi- 
tion he  did  not  follow  the  route  now 
traveled,  but  came  upon  the  grove  at  the 


xiv  -  INTRODUCTION. 

upper  end,  near  the  place  where  the  road  to 
Wawona  Point  now  branches  off  from  the 
main  drive.  The  spot  where  he  caught  his 
first  view  of  the  Big  Trees  has  been  appro- 
priately marked,  and  can  be  seen  from  the 
stage  road. 

So  impressed  was  Mr.  Glark  with  the  im- 
portance of  his  discovery,  that  he  opened 
up  a  good  horse  trail  from  Wawona  to  the 
Trees,  and  shortly  afterwards  built  a  log 
cabin  in  the  grove,  for  the  comfort  and  con- 
venience of  visitors  in  bad  or  stormy 
weather.  This  cabin  became  known  as 
"Galen's  Hospice." 

In  the  year.  1864  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States  passed  an  Act,  which  was 
approved  in  June  of  the  same  year,  granting 
to  the  State  of  California  the  "Yosemite 
Valley"  and  the  "Mariposa  Grove  of  Big 
Trees. ' '  This  grant  was  made  upon  certain 
conditions,  which  were  complied  with  by 
the  State,  and  a  Commission  was  appointed 
by  Governor  Low  to  manage  and  govern 
the  Valley  and  the  Big  Tree  Grove.  Galen 
Clark  was,  of  course,  selected  as  one  of  the 
commissioners.  He  was  subsequently  ap- 
pointed Guardian  of  the  Valley,  and  under 


INTRODUCTION.  xv 

his  administration  many  needed  improve- 
ments were  made  and  others  suggested. 
Bridges  were  built,  roads  constructed  on  the 
floor  of  the  Valley,  and  trails  laid  out  and 
finished  to  various  points  of  interest  over- 
looking the  Valley  itself.  In  a  word,  the 
Guardian  did  everything  possible  with  the 
limited  means  at  his  disposal. 

After  serving  twenty-four  years,  Mr. 
Clark  voluntarily  retired  from  the  position 
of  Guardian,  carrying  with  him  the  respect 
and  admiration  of  every  member  of  the 
Commission,  of  all  the  residents,  of  the 
Valley,  and  of  every  visitor  who  enjoyed 
the  pleasure  of  his  personal  acquaintance. 

As  showing  the  opinion  of  those  with 
whom  Mr.  Clark  was  intimately  and 
officially  associated  for  so  long  a  time,  the 
following  resolutions  passed  by  the  Board 
of  Commissioners  upon  his  voluntary  re- 
tirement from  the  office  of  Guardian,  are 
herein  given : 

Whereas,  Galen  Clark  has  for  a  long  number  of 
years  been  closely  identified  with  Yosemite  Valley, 
and  has  for  a  considerable  portion  of  that  time  been 
its  Guardian;  and 

Whereas,  he  has  now,  by  his  own  choice  and  will, 
relinquished  the  trust  confided  in  him  and  retired  into 
private  life;  and 


xvi  .  INTRODUCTION. 

Whereas,  his  faithful  and  eminent  services  as  Guar- 
dian, his  constant  efforts  to  preserve,  protect  and 
enhance  the  beauties  of  Yosemite;  his  dignified, 
kindly  and  courteous  demeanor  to  all  who  have  come 
to  see  and  enjoy  its  wonders,  and  his  upright  and 
noble  life,  deserve  from  us  a  fitting  recognition  and 
memorial;  Now,  Therefore,  be  it 

Resolved,  That  the  cordial  assurance  of  the  appre- 
ciation by  this  Commission  of  the  efforts  and  labors 
of  Galen  Clark,  as  Guardian  of  Yosemite,  in  its 
behalf,  be  tendered  and  expressed  to  him. 

That  we  recognize  in  him  a  faithful,  efficient 
and  worthy  citizen  and  officer  of  this  Commission 
and  of  the  State;  that  he  will  be  followed  into  his 
retirement  by  the  sincerest  and  best  wishes  of 
this  Commission,  individually  and  as  a  body,  for 
continued  long  life  and  constant  happiness. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  one  of  the 
most  modest  of  men;  but  perfectly  self- 
reliant,  and  always  actively  engaged  in 
some  useful  work.  He  has  resided  in  the 
Valley  for  more  than  twenty  summers,  and 
has  also  been  a  resident  during  many  win- 
ters, and  his  descriptions  of  the  Valley, 
when  wrapped  in  snow  and  ice,  are  intense- 
ly interesting.  Though  always  ready  to  give 
information,  he  is  naturally  reticent,  and 
never  forces  his  stories  or  reminiscences 
upon  visitors ;  indeed  it  requires  some  per- 
suasion to  hear  him  talk  about  himself  at 
all. 


INTRODUCTION.  xvii 

For  some  years  Mr.  Clark  was  post- 
master of  Yosemite ;  and  he  has  made  many 
trips  on  foot,  both  in  winter  and  summer, 
in  and  out  of  the  Valley. 

In  September,  1903,  this  writer  made  a 
trip  through  the  high  Sierras  from  Yosem- 
ite, and,  upon  reaching  the  top  of  the  Val- 
ley, Mr.  Clark  was  met  coming  down  the 
trail,  having  in  charge  a  party  of  his 
friends,  amongst  whom  was  a  lady  with  her 
two  small  children.  This  was  at  a  point  2700 
feet  above  the  floor  of  the  Valley,  which  is 
itself  4000  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea. 

Needless  to  say,  he  is  perfectly  familiar 
with  all  the  mountain  trails,  and,  notwith- 
standing his  great  age,  he  easily  makes 
long  trips  on  foot  and  horseback  which 
would  fatigue  a  much  younger  man.  Mr. 
Clark  is  thoroughly  familiar  with  the  flora, 
fauna  and  geology  of  the  Valley  and  its 
surroundings.  His  knowledge  of  botany  is 
particularly  accurate,  a  knowledge  gleaned 
partly  from  books,  but  mainly  from  close 
personal  observation,  the  best  possible 
teacher. 

His  long  residence  in  Yosemite  has  made 
him  familiar  with  every  spot,  his  love  for 


xviii  INTRODUCTION. 

the  Valley  is  deep  and  strong,  and  when  lie 
departs  this  life  his  remains  will  rest  close 
to  the  Yosemite  Falls,  in  the  little  grave- 
yard where  other  pioneers  are  buried. 

With  his  own  hands  he  has  dug  his  grave, 
and  quarried  his  own  tombstone  from  one 
of  the  massive  blocks  of  granite  found  in 
the  immediate  neighborhood.  His  monu- 
ment now  rests  in  his  grave,  and  when  it  is 
removed  to  receive  his  remains,  will  be  used 
to  mark  his  last  resting  place.  His  grave  is 
surrounded  by  a  neat  fence,  and  trees, 
shrubs  and  vines,  which  he  has  himself 
planted,  grow  around  in  great  profusion. 
In  each  corner  of  the  lot  is  a  young  Sequoia. 

May  it  be  many  years  before  he  is  called 
to  occupy  his  last  earthly  tenement. 

W.  W.  FOOTE. 
San  Francisco, 
February,  1904. 


INDIANS    OF    THE 
YOSEMITE 


INDIANS    OF    THE 
YOSEMITE 


EARLY  HISTORY. 

During  the  past  few  years  a  rapidly 
growing  interest  in  the  native  Indians  has 
been  manifested  by  a  large  majority  of 
visitors  to  the  Yosemite  Valley.  They  have 
evinced  a  great  desire  to  see  them  in  their 
rudely  constructed  summer  camps,  and  to 
purchase  some  articles  of  their  artistic 
basket  and  bead  work,  to  take  away  as 
highly  prized  souvenirs. 

They  are  also  anxious  to  learn  something 
of  their  former  modes  of  life,  habits  and 
domestic  industries,  before  their  original 
tribal  relations  were  ruthlessly  broken  up 
by  the  sudden  advent  of  the  white  popula- 
tion of  gold  miners  and  others  in  1850,  and 
the  subsequent  war,  in  which  the  Indians 


2  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

were  defeated,  and,  as  a  result,  nearly  ex- 
terminated. 

ORIGIN   OF 'THE  YOSEMITE  INDIANS. 

According  to  statements  made  by  Teneiya 
(Ten-eye'-ya*)  chief  of  the  Yosemites,  to 
Dr.  L.  H.  Bunnell,  and  published  by  him  in 
his  book  on  the  "  Discovery  of  the  Yosem- 
ite,M  the  original  Indian  name  of  the  Valley 
was  Ah-wah'-nee,  which  has  been  translated 
as  "deep  grassy  valley, "  and  the  Indians 
living  there  were  called  Ah-wah-nee'-chees, 
which  signified  "dwellers  in  Ah-wah'-nee. " 

Many  years  ago,  the  old  chief  said,  the 
Ah-wah-nee'-chees  had  been  a  large  and 
powerful  tribe,  but  by  reason  of  wars  and  a 
fatal  black  sickness,  nearly  all  had  been 
.destroyed,  and  the  survivors  of  the  band 
fled  from  the  Valley  and  joined  other  tribes. 

Foryears  afterwards  this  locality  was  un- 
inhabited, but  finally  Teneiya,  who  claimed 
to  be  descended  from  an  Ah-wah-nee'-ehee 


*  The  Indian  names  are  usually  pronounced  exactly 
as  spelled,  with  each  syllable  distinctly  sounded, 
and  the  principal  accent  on  the  penult,  as  in 
Ah-wah'-nee,  or  the  antepenult,  as  in  Yo-sem'-i-te. 
Where  doubt  might  exist,  the  accent  will  be  indi- 
cated, or  the  pronunciation  given  in  parenthesis. 


J'Jiutofjrdph   I))/  Fiske. 

YOSEMITE  FALLS   (CHO'-LACK), 

2,634  Feet. 

Near  the  foot  of  these  falls  was  located  the  vil- 
lage of  Ah-wah'-nee,  the  Indian  capital  and 
residence  of  Chief  Teneiya.  There  were  eight 
other  villages  in  the  Valley. 


4  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

chief,  left  the  Mo'nos,  where  he  had  been 
born  and  brought  up,  and,  gathering  some 
of  his  father's  old  tribe  around  him,  visited 
the  Valley  and  claimed  it  as  the  birthright 
of  his  people.  He  then  became  the  founder 
of  a  new  tribe  or  band,  which  received  the 
name  "Yo-sem'-i-te."  This  word  signifies 
a  full-grown  grizzly  bear,  and  Teneiya  said 
that  the  name  had  been  given  to  his  band 
because  they  occupied  the  mountains  and 
valley  which  were  the  favorite  resort  of  the 
grizzly  bears,  and  his  people  were  expert  in 
killing  them ;  that  his  tribe  had  adopted  the 
name  because  those  who  had  bestowed  it 
were  afraid  of  the  grizzlies,  and  also  feared 
his  band. 

The  Yosemites  were  perhaps  the  most 
warlike  of  any  of  the  tribes  in  this  part  of 
the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains,  who  were,  as 
a  rule,  a  peaceful  people,  dividing  the  terri- 
tory among  them,  and  indulging  in  few  con- 
troversies. In  fact,  these  Indians  in  general 
were  less  belligerent  and  warlike  than  any 
others  on  the  Pacific  Coast.  When  difficul- 
ties arose,  they  were  usually  settled  peace- 
fully by  arbitration,  in  a  grand  council  of 


EARLY  HISTORY.  5 

the  chiefs  and  head  men  of  the  tribes  in- 
volved, without  resorting  to  open  hostili- 
ties. 

OTHER  TRIBES. 

Other  bands  of  Indians  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  Yosemite  Valley  were  the  Po-ho-nee'- 
chees,  who  lived  near  the  headwaters  of  the 
Po-ho'-no  or  Bridal  Veil  Creek  in  summer, 
and  on  the  South  Fork  of  the  Merced' 
Eiver  in  winter,  about  twelve  miles  below 
Wawo'na;  the  Po-to-en'-cies,  who  lived  on 
the  Merced  River ;  Wil-tuc-um'-nees,  Tuol'- 
umne  River;  Noot'-choos  and  Chow-chil'- 
las,  Chowchilla  Valley;  Ho-na'-ches  and 
Me'-woos,  Fresno  River  and  vicinity ;  and 
Chook-chan'-ces,  San  Joaquin  River  and 
vicinity. 

These  tribes,  including  the  Yosemites, 
were  all  somewhat  affiliated  by  common  an- 
cestry or  by  intermarriage,  and  were  simi- 
lar in  their  general  characteristics  and  cus- 
toms. They  were  all  called  by  the  early 
California  settlers,  "Digger  Indians,"  as  a 
term  of  derision,  on  account  of  their  not 
being  good  fighters,  and  from  their  practice 
of  digging  the  tuberous  roots  of  certain 
native  plants,  for  food. 


6  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

INDIAN    WAR   OF    1851. 

Dr.  Bunnell,  in  his  book  already  referred 
to,  has  given  the  soldiers'  and  white  men's 
account  of  the  cause  of  the  Indian  war  of 
1851,  but  a  statement  of  the  grievances  on 
the  part  of  the  Indians,  which  caused  the 
uniting  of  all  the  different  tribes  in  the 
mining  region  adjacent  to  Yosemite,  in  an 
attempt  to  drive  the  white  invaders  from 
their  country,  has  never  been  published, 
and  a  brief  account  of  these  grievances 
may  be  interesting. 

AGGRESSIONS   BY   THE    WHITE   SETTLERS. 

The  first  parties  of  prospecting  miners 
were  welcomed  by  the  Indians  with  their 
usual  friendliness  and  hospitality  toward 
strangers — a  universal  characteristic  of 
these  tribes, — and  the  mining  for  gold  was 
watched  with  great  interest.  They  soon 
learned  the  value  of  the  gold  dust,  and  some 
of  them  engaged  in  mining,  and  exchanged 
their  gold  at  the  trading  stations  for 
blankets  and  fancy  trinkets,  at  an  enormous 
profit  to  the  traders,  and  peace  and  good 
feeling  prevailed  for  a  short  time. 


EARLY   HISTORY.  7 

The  report  of  the  rich  gold  "diggin's" 
on  the  waters  of.  the  Tuolumne,  Merced, 
Mariposa,  Chowchilla,  and  Fresno  Rivers, 
soon  spread,  and  miners  by  thousands  came 
and  took  possession  of  the  whole  country, 
paying  no  regard  to  the  natural  rights  or 
wishes  of  the  Indians. 

Some  of  the  Indian  chiefs  made  the 
proposition  that  if  the  miners  would  give 
them  some  of  the  gold  which  they  found  in 
their  part  of  the  country,  they  might  stay 
and  work.  This  offer  was  not  listened  to  by 
the  miners,  and  a  large  majority  of  the 
white  invaders  treated  the  natives  a's  though 
they  had  no  rights  whatever  to  be  respected. 
In  some  instances,  where  Indians  had  found 
and  were  working  good  mining  claims,  they 
were  forcibly  driven  away  by  white  miners, 
who  took  possession  of  their  claims  and 
worked  them. 

Moreover,  the  Indians  saw  that  their 
main  sources  of  food  supply  were  being 
rapidly  destroyed.  The.  oak  trees,  which 
produced  the  acorns — one  of  their  staple 
articles  of  food, — were  being  cut  down  and 
burned  by  miners  and  others  in  clearing  up 
land  for  cultivation,  and  the  deer  and  other 


,*- 


Copyrighted  Photograph  i)ij  Jtoiiscn. 

AN    INDIAN    DANCER. 
Chow-chil-la   Indian   in   full   war-dance   costume. 


EARLY  HISTORY.  9 

food  game  were  being  rapidly. killed  off  or 
driven  from  the  locality. 

In  the  "early  days/'  before  California 
was  admitted  as  a  free  State  into  the  Union, 
it  was  reported,  and  was  probably  true, 
that  some  of  the  immigrants  from  the  slave- 
holding  States  took  Indians  and  made 
slaves  of  them  in  working  their  mining 
claims.  It  was  no  uncommon  event  for  the 
sanctity  of  their  homes  and  families  to  be 
invaded  by  some  of  the  "baser  sort,"  and 
young  women  taken,  willing  or  not,  for  ser- 
vants and  wives. 

RETALIATION. 

In  retaliation,  and  as  some  compensation 
for  these  many  grievous  outrages  upon 
their  natural  inalienable  rights  of  domain 
and  property,  and  their  native  customs,  the 
Indians  stole  horses  and  mules  from  the 
white  settlers,  and  killed  them  for  food  for 
their  families,  who,  in  many  instances,  were 
in  a  condition  of  starvation. 

Finally  the  chiefs  and  leading  men  of  all 
tlie  tribes  involved  met  in  a  grand  council 
and  resolved  to  combine  their  warrior  forces 
in  one  great  effort  to  drive  all  their  white 
enemies  from  the  country,  before  they 
became  more  numerous  and  formidable. 


10  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

BEGINNING   OF    HOSTILITIES. 

To  prepare  for  this  struggle  for  exist- 
ence, they  made  raids  upon  some  of  the 
principal  trading  posts  in  the  mining  sec- 
tions, killing  those  in  charge,  took  all  the 
blankets,  clothing  and  provisions  they  could 
carry  away,  and  fled  to  the  mountains, 
where  they  were  soon  pursued  by  the  sol- 
diers and  volunteer  citizens,  and  a  spirited 
battle  was  fought  without  any  decisive  ad- 
vantage to  either  side. 

The  breaking  out  of  actual  hostilities 
created  great  excitement  among  the  whites, 
and  an  urgent  call  was  made  upon  the  Gov- 
ernor of  the  State  for  a  military  force  to 
meet  the  emergency,  and  protect  the  set- 
tlers— a  force  strong  enough  to  thoroughly 
subdue  the  Indians,  and  remove  all  of  them 
to  reservations  to  be  selected  by  the  United 
States  Indian  Commissioners  for  that 
purpose. 

Meantime  the  Governor  and  the  Com- 
missioners, who  had  then  arrived,  were 
receiving  numerous  communications,  many 
of  them  from  persons  in  high  official  posi- 
tions, earnestly  urging  a  more  humane  and 
just  policy,  averring  that  the  Indians  had 


EARLY  HISTORY.  11 

real  cause  for  complaint,  that  they  had  been 
"more  sinned  against  than  sinning7'  since 
the  settling  of  California  by  the  whites,  and 
that  they  were  justly  entitled  to  protection 
by  the  Government  and  compensation  for 
the  spoliations  and  grievances  they  had 
suffered. 

These  protests  doubtless  had  some  in- 
fluence in  delaying  hostile  measures,  and  in 
the  inauguration  of  efforts  to  induce  the 
Indians  to  come  in  and  treat  with  the  Com- 
missioners, envoys  being  sent  out  to  assure 
them  of  fair  treatment  and  personal  safety. 
Many  of  the  Indians  accepted  these  offers, 
and,  as  the  different  tribes  surrendered, 
they  were  taken  to  the  two  reservations 
which  the  Commissioners  had  established 
for  them  on  the  Fresno  River,  the  principal 
one  being  a  few  miles  above  the  place 
where  the  town  of  Madera  is  now  located. 

As  before  stated,  these  Indians  were  not 
a  warlike  people.  Their  only  weapons  were 
their  bows  and  arrows,  and  these  they  soon 
found  nearly  useless  in  defending  them- 
selves at  long  range  against  soldiers  armed 
with  rifles.  Moreover,  their  stock  of  provi- 


12  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

sions  was  so  limited  that  they  either  had  to 
surrender  or  starve. 

DISCOVERY  OF  YOSEMITE  VALLEY. 

The  Yosemites  and  one  or  two  other 
bands  of  Indians  had  refused  to  surrender, 
and  had  retreated  to  theirtnountain  strong- 
holds, where  they  proposed  to  make  a  last 
determined  resistance.  Active  preparations 
were  accordingly  made  by  the  State  author- 
ities to  follow  them,  and  either  capture  or 
exterminate  all  the  tribes  involved.  For 
this  purpose  a  body  of  State  volunteers, 
known  as  the  Mariposa  Battalion,  was  or- 
ganized, under  the  command  of  Major 
James  D.  Savage,  to  pursue  these  tribes 
into  the  mountains;  and,  after  many  long 
marches  and  some  fighting,  the  Indians 
were  all  defeated,  captured,  and,  with  their 
women  and  children,  put  upon  the  reserva- 
tions under  strong  military  guard. 

It  was  during  this  campaign  that 
Major  Savage  and  his  men  discovered  the 
Yosemite  Valley,  about  the  21st  of  March, 
1851,  while  in  pursuit  of  the  Yosemites, 
under  old  Chief  Teneiya,  for  whom  Lake 
Teneiya  and  Teneiya  Canyon  have  appro- 
priately been  named. 


Pftotofjrapli    lit  Foley. 

THREE  BROTHERS   ( WAW-HAW-KEE), 
3,900  Feet. 

Named  by  the  soldiers  who  discovered  the  Val- 
ley, to  commemorate  the  capture  of  three 
sons  of  Teneiya  near  this  place.  The  Indian 
name  means  "Falling  Rocks." 


(Eljapter 

EFFECTS   OF  THE   WAR. 

The  Yosemites  and  all  of  the  other  tribes 
named  in  the  previous  chapter  were  put 
upon  the  Fresno  reservation.  Major  Sav- 
age, who  had  been  the  leading  figure  in  the 
war  against  the  Indians,  was  perhaps  their 
best  friend  while  in  captivity,  and  finally 
lost  his  life  in  a  personal  quarrel,  while 
resenting  a  wrong  which  had  been  com- 
mitted against  them. 

The  tribes  from  south  of  the  San  Joaquin 
Kiver,  who  were  also  conquered  in  1851, 
were  put  upon  the  Kings  River  and  Tejon 
(fay-hone')  reservations. 

LIFE   ON   THE  RESERVATIONS. 

Ample  food  supplies,  blankets,  clothing 
and  cheap  fancy  articles  were  furnished  by 
the  Government  for  the  subsistence,  com- 
fort and  pleasure  of  the  Indians  on  the  res- 
ervations, and  for  a  short  time  they  seemed 
to  be  contented,  and  to  enjoy  the  novelty 
of  their  new  mode  of  life.  The  young,  able- 
bodied  men  were  put  to  work  assisting  in 


EFFECTS   OF  THE  WAR.  15 

clearing,  fencing  and  cultivating  fields  for 
hay  and  vegetables,  and  thus  they  were  par- 
tially self-supporting.  A  large  portion  of 
tnem,  however,  soon  began  to  tire  of  the 
restraints  imposed,  and  longed  for  their 
former  condition  of  freedom,  and  many  of 
tiiem  sickened  and  died. 

Old  Teneiya,  chief  of  the  "Grizzlies," 
was  particularly  affected  by  the  change  in 
his  surroundings,  and  by  the  humiliation  of 
defeat.  He  suffered  keenly  from  the  hot 
weather  of  the  plains,  after  his  free  life  in 
the  mountains,  and  begged  to  be  allowed  to 
return  to  his  old  home,  promising  not  to  dis- 
turb the  white  settlers  in  any  way,  a  pledge 
which  he  did  not  break. 

DEATH  OF  TENEIYA. 

Teneiya  was  finally  allowed  to  depart, 
with  his  family,  after  having  been  on  the 
reservation  only  a  few  months,  and  some  of 
his  old  followers  afterwards  stole  away  and 
joined  him.  With  this  remnant  of  his  band 
he  returned  to  the  Yosemite,  but  not  long 
afterwards  they  were  set  upon  by  the 
Monos,  a  tribe  from  the  eastern  side  of  the 
Sierras,  with  whom  they  had  quarreled,  and 
the  old  chief  and  many  of  his  warriors  were 


16  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

killed.  It  was  perhaps  fitting  that  he  should 
meet  his  death  in  the  valley  which  he  loved, 
and  which  he  had  so  long  defended  against 
his  enemies. 

RESTORED  TO  LIBERTY. 

In  1855,  after  four  years  of  confinement 
on  the  reservations,  an  agreement  was  made 
with  the  Indian  Commissioners,  by  the  head 
men  of  the  tribes,  that  if  their  people  were 
again  allowed  their  freedom,  they  would 
forever  remain  in  peace  with  the  white  set- 
tlers, and  try  and  support  themselves  free 
of  expense  to  the  Government.  They  were 
soon  permitted  to  leave,  and  have  ever 
since  faithfully  kept  their  promise. 

Most  of  them  went  back  to  the  vicinity  of 
their  old  homes,  and  made  temporary  settle- 
ments on  unoccupied  Government  land,  as 
many  of  their  old  village  sites  were  now  in 
possession  of  white  settlers.  As  there  was 
a  very  large  crop  of  acorns  that  season, 
they  gathered  an  abundant  supply  for  win- 
ter use,  and,  with  what  was  given  to  them 
in  the  way  of  food  and  clothing  by  some  of 
the  white  settlers,  they  managed  to  get 
through  the  winter  fairly  well. 


F1iotofji'«i>li    bij  Foleif. 

CAPTAIN  PAUL. 
One   of   the   characters   of   the  Valley.      Supposed 

to  be  105  years  old,  and  a  survivor  of  Tenei- 

ya's  band. 


18  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

HARDSHIP    AND    SUFFERING. 

Their  four  years'  residence  on  the  reser- 
vations, however,  had  been  more  of  a  school 
in  the  vices  of  the  whites  than  one  of  a 
higher  education.  They  became  demoral- 
ized socially,  addicted  to  many  bad  habits, 
and  left  the  reservations  in  worse  condition 
than  when  they  were  taken  there.  Their  old 
tribal  relations  and  customs  were  nearly 
broken  up,  though  they  still  had  their  head 
men  to  whom  they  looked  for  counsel  in  all 
important  matters. 

As  the  country  became  more  settled,  much 
of  their  main  food  supply,  the  acorns,  was 
consumed  by  the  domestic  animals  of  the 
ranchers,  and  their  mode  of  living  became 
more  precarious  and  transitory,  and  many 
of  them  were,  at  times,  in  a  condition  near 
to  starvation.  In  these  straitened  and 
desperate  circumstances,  many  of  their 
young  women  were  used  as  commercial 
property,  and  peddled  out  to  the  mining 
camps  and  gambling  saloons  for  money  to 
buy  food,  clothing  or  whisky,  this  latter  ar- 
ticle being  obtained  through  the  aid  of 
some  white  person,  in  violation  of  law. 


EFFECTS   OF   THE  WAR.  19 

Their  miserable,  squalid  condition  of  liv- 
ing opened  the  way  for  diseases  of  a  malig- 
nant character,  which  their  medicine  men 
could  not  cure,  and  their  numbers  were  rap- 
idly reduced  by  death. 

At  the  present  time  there  are  not  in  exist- 
ence a  half-dozen  of  the  old  Yosemites  who 
were  living,  even  as  children,  when  the  Val- 
ley was  first  discovered  in  1851;  and  many 
of  the  other  tribes  have  been  correspond- 
ingly reduced. 


Photograph  b//  Jfoi/^m. 

YOSEMITE    MOTHER    AND    PAPOOSE. 
The  baby  basket  is  carried  on  the  back,  like  all 

burdens,  and  supported  by  a  band  across  the 

forehead. 


CUSTOMS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS. 

As  stated  in  a  previous  chapter,  all  of  the 
Indian  tribes  occupying  the  region  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  Yosemite  Valley  were  more 
or  less  affiliated  by  blood  and  intermarriage 
and  resembled  each  other  in  their  customs, 
characteristics  and  religious  beliefs.  What 
is  said,  therefore,  on  these  subjects  in  the 
following  pages,  will  be  understood  to  ap- 
ply generally  to  all  of  the  tribes  which  have 
been  mentioned  as  inhabiting  this  region, 
although,  of  course,  minor  differences  did 
exist,  principally  due  to  environment.  As 
in  the  case  of  all  primitive  peoples,  their 
mode  of  life,  food  supply,  etc.,  were  largely 
determined  by  natural  conditions,  and  the 
tribes  living  in  the  warm  foot-hills  differed 
somewhat  in  these  respects  from  those 
dwelling  higher  in  the  mountains. 

DIVISION  OF  TERKITOKY. 

In  their  original  tribal  settlements,  at  the 
time  the  first  pioneer  whites  came  among 
them,  the  Indians  had  well  defined  "or  under- 


INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

stood  boundary  lines,  between  the  territor- 
ies claimed  by  each  tribe  for  their  exclusive 
use  in  hunting  game  and  gathering  means 
of  support ;  and  any  trespassing  on  the  do- 
main of  others  was  likely  to  cause  trouble. 
This  arrangement,  however,  did  not  apply 
to  the  higher  ranges  of  the  Sierras,  which 
were  considered  common  hunting  ground. 

COMMERCE  AMONG  THE  TRIBES. 

As  there  was  a  difference  in  the  natural 
products  and  resources  of  different  sections 
of  the  country,  there  was  a  system  of  recip- 
rocal trade  in  the  exchange  of  the  differ- 
ent desirable  commodities.  Sometimes  com- 
merce between  tribes  extended  for  a  long 
distance,  as,  for  instance,  the  Indians  on 
the  western  side  of  the  Sierra  Nevada 
Mountains  were  entirely  dependent  upon 
the  Pai-utes  (Pye-yuies')  on  the  eastern 
side  for  the  obsidian,  a  kind  of  volcanic 
glass,  from  which  they  made  the  points  for 
their  most  deadly  arrows,  used  in  hunting 
large  game  or  when  in  mortal  combat  with 
their  enemies.  They  were  also  dependent 
upon  the  Pai-utes  for  their  supply  of  salt 
for  domestic  use,  which  came  in  solid  blocks 


CUSTOMS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS.  23 

as  quarried  from  salt  mines,  said  to  be  two 
days'  travel  on  foot  from  Mono  Lake. 

From  the  Indians  at  or  near  the  Catholic 
Missions  to  the  South,  on  the  Pacific  Coast, 
they  gpt'  their  hunting  knives  of  iron  or 
steel,  and  sea  shells  of  various  kinds,  for 
personal  or  dress  ornaments,  and  also  to  be 
used  as  money.  From  the  same  source  they 
obtained  beads  of  various  forms,  sizes  and 
colors,  cheap  jewelry  and  other  fancy  arti- 
cles, a  few  blankets,  and  pieces  of  red  bunt- 
ing, strips  of  which  the  chiefs  and  head 
men  wore  around  their  heads  as  badges,  in- 
dicating their  official  positions. 
COMMUNICATION. 

They  had  a  very  efficient  system  of 
quickly  spreading  important  news  by  relays 
of  special  couriers,  who  took  the  news  to 
the  first  stations  or  tribes  in  different  direc- 
tions, where  others  took  the  verbal  dis- 
patches and  ran  to  the  next  station,  and  so 
on,  so  that  all  tribes  within  an  area  of  a 
hundred  miles  would  get  the  good  or  bad 
tidings  within  a  few  hours.  In  this  manner 
important  communication  was  kept  up  be- 
tween the  different  tribes. 


24  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

They  also  had  well  organized  signal  sys- 
tems, by  fires  in  the  night  and  smoke  by 
day,  on  high  points  of  observation — varia- 
tions in  the  lights  (either  steady,  bright  or 
flashing)  indicating  somewhat  the  character 
of  the  tidings  thus  given. 

DWELLINGS. 

Their  winter  huts,  or  o' -chums,  as  they 
termed  them,  were  invariably  of  a  conical 
form,  made  with  small  poles,  and  covered 
with  the  bark  of  the  incense  cedar  (Liboce- 
drus  decurrens).  A  few  poles  ten  or  twelve 
feet  long  were  set  in  the  ground  around  an 
area  of  about  twelve  feet  in  diameter  with 
their  tops  inclined  together.  The  outside 
was  then  closely  covered  with  long  strips  of 
the  cedar  bark,  making  it  perfectly  water- 
tight. An  opening  was  left  on  the  south 
side  for  an  entrance,  which  could  be  readily 
closed  with  a  portable  door.  An  opening 
was  also  left  at  the  top  for  the  escape  of  the 
smoke,  a  fire  being  kindled  in  the  center 
inside. 

One  of  these  huts  would  hold  a  family  of 
a  half-dozen  persons,  with  all  their  house- 
hold property,  dogs  included ;  and  there  is 


INDIAN    O'-CHUM. 

This  style  of  house,  made  of  cedar  poles  covered 
with  bark,  is  more  easily  heated  than  any 
other  form  of  dwelling-  known. 


26  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

no  other  form  of  a  single-room  dwelling 
that  can  be  kept  warm  and  comfortable  in 
cold  weather  with  so  little  fire,  as  this  In- 
dian o'-chiiw. 

Their  underbedding  usually  consisted  of 
the  skins  of  bears,  deer,  antelope  or  elk,  and 
the  top  cover  ing  was  a  blanket  or  robe  made 
of  the  skins  of  small  fur-bearing  animals, 
such  as  rabbits,  hares,  wildcats  and  foxes. 
The  skins  were  cut  in  narrow  strips,  which 
were  loosely  twisted  so  as  to  bring  the  fur 
entirely  around  on  the  outside,  and  then 
woven  into  a  warp  of  strong  twine  made  of 
the  fine,  tough,  fibrous  bark  of  a  variety  of 
milkweed  (Asclepias  speciosa).  These  fur 
robes  were  very  warm,  and  were  also  used 
as  wraps  when  traveling  in  cold  weather. 

During  the  warm  summer  season  they 
generally  lived  outside  in  brush  arbors,  and 
used  their  o'-chums  as  storage  places. 
CLOTHING. 

Their  clothing  was  very  simple  and  scant, 
before  being  initiated  into  the  use  of  a  more 
ample  and  complete  style  of  covering  while 
living  at  the  reservations.  The  ordinary 
full  complement  of  dress  for  a  man  (Nung'- 


Draiciiifj  bi/  Jorf/ciixcn. 

YOSEMITE  MAIDEN  IN  NATIVE   DRESS. 
This    buckskin    costume    has    now   been    replaced 

by  the  unpicturesque  calico  of  civilization. 


INDIANS  OP  THE  YOSEMITE. 

ah )  was  simply  a  breech-clout,  or  short  hip- 
skirt  made  of  skins;  that  for  a  woman 
(O'-hoh)  was  a  skirt  reaching  from  the 
waist  to  the  knees,  made  of  dressed  deer- 
skin finished  at  the  bottom  with  a  slit 
fringe,  and  sometimes  decorated  with  var- 
ious fancy  ornaments.  Both  men  and  wo- 
men frequently  wore  moccasins  made  of 
dressed  deer  or  elk  skin.  Young  children 
generally  went  entirely  nude. 

CHARACTERISTICS. 

The  Indians  of  the  various  tribes  in  this 
part  of  the  Sierras  vary  somewhat  in  phy- 
sical characteristics,  but  in  general  are  of 
medium  height,  strong,  lean  and  agile,  and 
the  men  are  usually  fine  specimens  of  man- 
hood. They  are  rather  light  in  color,  but 
frequently  rub  their  bodies  with  some  kind 
of  oil,  which  gives  the  flesh  a  much  redder 
and  more  glossy  appearance.  The  hair  is 
black  and  straight,  and  the  eyes  are  black 
and  deep  set.  The  beard  is  sparse,  and  in 
former  times  was  not  allowed  to  grow  at 
all,  each  hair  being  pulled  out  with  a  rude 
kind  of  tweezers.  They  are  naturally  of  a 
gentle  and  friendly  disposition,  but  their 


CUSTOMS  AND  CHARACTERISTICS.  29 

experience  with  the  white  race  has  made 
them  distant  and  uncommunicative  to 
strangers. 

Most  of  the  older  Indians  still  cling  to 
their  old  customs  and  manner  of  living,  and 
are  very  slow  to  learn  to  talk  our  language, 
but  the  younger  ones  are  striving  to  live  like 
the  white  people,  and  seem  proud  to  adopt 
our  style  of  dress  and  manner  of  cooking. 
They  all  speak  our  language  plainly,  and 
some  few  of  them  attend  the  public  schools 
when  living  near  by,  and  acquire  very  read- 
ily the  common  rudiments  of  an  education. 

Their  style  of  architecture  is  in  a  state 
of  transition,  like  themselves.  Their  old 
o'-chum  form  of  dwelling  is  now  very  sel- 
dom seen — a  rude  building  of  more  roomy 
and  modern  design  having  taken  its  place. 

All  the  able-bodied  men  are  ready  and 
willing  to  work  at  any  kind  of  common 
labor,  when  they  have  an  opportunity,  and 
have  learned  to  want  nearly  the  same 
amount  of  pay  as  a  white  man  for  the  same 
work. 

As  a  rule,  they  are  trustworthy,  and  when 
confidence  is  placed  in  their  honesty  it  is 
very  rarely  betrayed.  During  nearly  the 


30  INDIANS  OF  THE  YO  SEMITE. 

past  fifty  years,  a  great  many  thousands  of 
people  have  visited  the  Yosemite  Valley 
with  their  own  camping  outfits,  and,  during 
the  day,  and  often  all  night  are  absent  on 
distant  trips  of  observation,  with  no  one 
left  in  charge  of  camp,  yet  there  has  never 
to  my  knowledge  been  an  instance  of  any- 
thing being  stolen  or  molested  by  Indians. 
There  are,  however,  some  dishonest  In- 
dians, who  will  steal  from  their  own  peo- 
ple, and  sometimes,  when  a  long  distance 
from  their  own  camp,  they  may  steal  from 
the  whites.  A  few,  if  they  can  get  whisky, 
through  the  aid  of  some  white  person,  will 
become  drunk  and  fight  among  themselves, 
and  occasionally  one  of  them  may  be  killed; 
but,  as  a  rule  they  are  peaceful  and  order- 
ly, and  hold  sacred  the  promise  made  to  the 
Indian  Commissioners  by  the  old  tribal 
chiefs,  when  released  from  confinement  on 
the  reservations  that  they  would  forever 
keep  the  peace,  and  never  again  make  war 
against  the  white  people. 


Chapter 

SOURCES  OF  POOD  SUPPLY. 

The  food  supply  of  the  Sierra  Indians 
was  extensive  and  abundant,  consisting  of 
the  flesh  of  deer,  antelope,  elk  and  mustang 
horses,  together  with  fish,  water-fowls, 
birds,  acorns,  berries,  pine  nuts,  esculent 
herbage  and  the  tuberous  roots  of  certain 
plants,  all  of  which  were  easily  obtained, 
even  with  their  simple  and  limited  means 
of  securing  them.  Mushrooms,  fungi, 
grasshoppers,  worms  and  the  larvae  of 
ants  and  other  insects,  were  also  eaten,  and 
some  of  these  articles  were  considered 
great  delicacies. 

HUNTING. 

Their  main  effective  weapons  for  hunting 
large  game  were  their  bows  and  obsidian- 
pointed  arrows.  Their  manner  of  hunting 
was  either  by  the  stealthy  still  hunt,  or  a 
general  turn-out,  surrounding  a  large  area 
of  favorable  country  and  driving  to  a  com- 
mon center,  where  at  close  range  the 


FOOD  SUPPLY.  33 

hunters  could  sometimes  make  an  extensive 
slaughter. 

When  on  the  still  hunt  for  deer  in  the 
brushy,  sparsely  timbered  foothills  of  the 
Sierra  Range  of  mountains,  or  higher  up  in 
the  extensive  forests,  some  of  the  hunters 
wore  for  a  headgear  a  false  deer's  head,  by 
which  deceptive  device  they  were  enabled 
to  get  to  a  closer  and  more  effective  range 
with  their  bows  and  arrows.  This  head- 
dress was  made  of  the  whole  skin  of  a  doe's 
head,  with  a  part  of  the  neck,  the  head  part 
stuffed  with  light  material,  the  eyeholes 
filled  in  with  the  green  feathered  scalp  of 
.a  duck's  head,  and  the  top  furnished  with 
light  wooden  horns,  the  branching  stems  of 
the  manzanita  (Arctostaphylos)  being  gen- 
erally used  for  this  purpose.  The  neck  part 
was  made  to  fit  on  the  hunter's  head  and 
fasten  with  strings  tied  under  the  chin. 
This  unique  style  of  headgear  was  used  by 
some  Indian  hunters  for  many  years  after 
they  had  guns  to  hunt  with. 

The  high  ranges  of  the  mountains,  as 
already  stated,  were  considered  common 
hunting  ground  by  the  different  tribes.  The 
deer,  many  of  them,  were  in  some  degree 


m 


FOOD  SUPPLY.  35 

migratory  in  their  habits,  being  driven  from 
the  higher  ranges  to  the  foothills  by  the 
deep  winter  snows,  and  in  the  spring  follow- 
ing close  to  the  melting,  receding  snow, 
back  again  to  their  favorite  summer  haunts. 
Late  in  the  summer,  or  early  in  the  fall, 
just  before  holding  some  of  their  grand 
social  or  sacred  festivals,  the  Indian  hunters 
would  make  preparation  for  a  big  hunt  in 
the  mountains,  to  get  a  good  supply  of  veni- 
son for  the  feast.  One  of  the  first  absolute 
prerequisites  was  to  go  through  a  thorough 
course  of  sweating  and  personal  cleansing. 
This  was  done  by  resorting  to  their  sweat 
houses,  which  were  similar  in  construction 
to  the  o'-chums,  except  that  the  top  was 
rounded  and  the  whole  structure  was  cov- 
ered thickly  with  mud  and  earth  to  exclude 
the  air.  These  houses  were  heated  with  hot 
stones  and  coals  of  fire,  and  the  hunters 
would  then  crawl  into  them  and  remain  un- 
til in  a  profuse  perspiration,  when  they 
would  come  out  and  plunge  into  cold  water 
for  a  wash-off.  This  was  repeated  until  they 
thought  themselves  sufficiently  free  from  all 
bodily  odor  so  that  the  deer  could  not  detect 
their  approach  by  scent,  and  flee  for  safety. 


36  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

After  this  purification  they  kept  them- 
selves strictly  as  celibates  until  the  hunt 
was  over,  though  their  women  went  along 
to  help  carry  the  outfit,  keep  camp,  cook, 
search  for  berries  and  pine  nuts,  and  assist 
in  bringing  to  camp  and  taking  care  of  the 
deer  as  killed,  and  in  "  packing "  the  meat 
out  to  the  place  of  rendezvous  appointed 
for  the  grand  ceremonies  and  feast. 

Their  usual  manner  of  cooking  fresh 
meat  was  by  broiling  on  hot  coals,  or  roast- 
ing before  the  fire  or  in  the  embers.  Some- 
times, however,  they  made  a  cavity  in  the 
ground,  in  which  they  built  a  fire,  which 
was  afterwards  cleared  away  and  the  cav- 
ity lined  with  very  hot  stones,  on  which 
they  placed  the  meat  wrapped  in  green 
herbage,  and  covered  it  with  other  hot  rocks 
and  earth,  to  remain  until  suitably  cooked. 

When  they  had  a  surplus  of  fresh  meat 
they  cut  it  in  strips  and  hung  it  in  the  sun- 
shine to  dry.  The  dried  meat  was  generally 
cooked  by  roasting  in  hot  embers,  and  then 
beaten  to  soften  it  before  b.eing  eaten. 

A  young  hunter  never  ate  any  of  the  first 
deer  he  killed,  as  he  believed  that  if  he  did 


FOOD  SUPPLY.  37 

so    lie    would    never    succeed    in    killing 
another. 

FISHING. 

They  had  various  methods  of  catching 
fish — with  hook  and  line,  with  a  spear,  by 
weir-traps  in  the  stream,  and  by  saturating 
the  water  with  the  juice  of  the  soap-root 
plant  (Chlorogalum  pomeridianum).  Be- 
fore they  could  obtain  fishhooks  of  modern 
make,  they  made  them  of  bone.  Their  lines 
were  made  of  the  tough,  fibrous,  silken  bark 
of  the  variety  of  milkweed  or  silkweed, 
already  mentioned.  Their  spears  were 
small  poles  pointed  with  a  single  tine  of 
bone,  which  was  so  arranged  that  it  became 
detached  by  the  struggles  of  the  fish,  and 
was  then  held  by  a  string  fastened  near  its 
center,  which  turned  it  crosswise  of  the 
wound  and  made  it  act  as  an  effective  barb. 

Their  weir-traps  were  put  in  the  rapids, 
and  constructed  by  building  wing  dams 
diagonally  down  to  the  middle  of  the  stream 
until  the  two  ends  came  near  together,  and 
in  this  narrow  outlet  was  placed  a  sort  of 
wicker  basket  trap,  made  of  long  willow 
sprouts  loosely  woven  together  and  closed 


38  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

at  the  pointed  lower  end,  which  was  ele- 
vated above  the  surface  of  the  water  below 
the  dam.  The  fish,  in  going  down  stream, 
ran  into  this  trap,  and  soon  found  them- 
selves at  the  lower  end  and  out  of  the  water. 

The  soap-root  was  used  at  a  low  stage 
of  water,  late  in  summer.  They  dug  several 
bushels  of  the  bulbous  roots  and  went  to  a 
suitable  place  on  the  bank,  where  the  roots 
were  pounded  into  a  pulp,  and  mixed  with 
soil  and  water.  This  mixture,  by  the  hand- 
ful, was  then  rubbed  on  rocks  out  in  the 
stream,  which  roiled  the  water  and  also 
made  it  somewhat  foamy.  The  fish  were 
soon  affected  by  it,  became  stupid  with  a 
sort  of  strangulation,  and  rose  to  the  sur- 
face, where  they  were  easily  captured  by 
the  Indians  with  their  scoop  baskets.  In  a 
stream  the  size  of  the  South  Fork  of  the 
Merced  Eiver  at  Wawona,  by  this  one  oper- 
ation every  fish  in  it  for  a  distance  of  three 
miles  would  be  taken  in  a  few  hours. 

The  fish  were  generally  cooked  by  roast- 
ing on  hot  coals  from  burned  oak  wood  or 
bark.  ACOKISTS  AS  FOOD. 

Acorns  were  their  main  staple  article  of 
breadstuff,  and  they  are  still  used  by  the 


Druu'huj  by  Mrs.  Joi'<jcn$en. 

CHUCK'-AH. 
Storehouse    for    nuts    and    acorns,    thatched   with 

pine  branches,  points  downward,  to  keep  out 

mice  and  squirrels. 


40  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

present  generation  whenever  they  can  be 
obtained. 

They  are  gathered  in  the  fall  when  ripe, 
and  are  preserved  for  future  use  in  the  old 
style  Indian  cache  or  storehouse.  This  con- 
sists of  a  structure  which  they  call  a 
chuck'-dh,  which  is  a  large  basket-shaped 
receptacle  made  of  long  willow  sprouts 
closely  woven  together.  It  is  usually  about 
six  feet  high  and  three  feet  in  diameter.  It 
is  set  upon  stout  posts  about  three  feet  high 
and  supported  in  position  by  four  longer 
posts  on  the  outside,  reaching  to  the  top, 
and  there  bound  firmly  to  keep  them  from 
spreading.  The  outside  of  the  basket  is 
thatched  with  small  pine  branches,  points 
downward,  to  shed  the  rain  and  snow,  and 
to  protect  the  contents  from  the  depreda- 
tions of  squirrels  and  woodpeckers.  When 
filled,  the  top  also  is  securely  covered  with 
bark,  as  a  protection  from  the  winter 
storms.  When  the  acorns  are  wanted  for 
use,  a  small  hole  is  made  at  the  bottom  of 
the  chuck'-ah,  and  they  are  taken  out  from 
time  to  time  as  required. 

The  acorns  from  the  black  or  Kellogg 's 
oak  (Quercus  California)  are  considered 


FOOD  SUPPLY.  41 

much  the  best  and  most  nutritious  by  the 
Indians.  This  is  the  oak  which  is  so  beau- 
tiful and  abundant  in  the  Yosemite  Valley. 

These  acorns  are  quite  bitter,  and  are  not 
eaten  in  their  natural  condition,  as  most 
fruit  and  nuts  are  eaten,  bui  have  to  be 
quite  elaborately  prepared  and  cooked  to 
make  them  palatable.  First,  the  hull  is 
cracked  and  removed,  and  the  kernel 
pounded  or  ground  into  a  fine  meal.  In  the 
Yosemite  Valley  and  at  other  Indian  camps 
in  the  mountains,  this  is  done  by  grinding 
with  their  stone  pestles  or  metats 
(may-tats'}  in  the  ho'yas  or  mortars,  worn 
by  long  usage  in  large  flat-top  granite 
rocks,  one  of  which  is  near  every  Indian 
camp.  Lower  down  in  the  foothills,  where 
there  are  no  suitable  large  rocks  for  these 
permanent  mortars,  the  Indians  used  single 
portable  stone  mortars  for  this  purpose. 

After  the  acorns  are  ground  to  a  fine 
meal,  the  next  process  is  to  take  out  the 
bitter  tannin  principle.  This  is  done  in  the 
following  manner :  They  make  large  shal- 
low basins  in  clean  washed  sand,  in  the  cen- 
ter of  which  are  laid  a  few  flat,  fan-like  ends 
of  fir  branches.  A  fire  is  then  made  near  by, 


FOOD  SUPPLY.  43 

and  small  stones  of  four  or  five  pounds  in 
weight  are  heated,  with  which  they  warm 
water  in  some  of  their  large  cooking  baskets, 
and  mix  the  acorn  meal  with  it  to  the  con- 
sistency of  thin  gruel.  This  mixture  is 
poured  into  the  sand  basins,  and  as  the 
water  leaches  out  into  the  sand  it  takes  with 
it  the  bitter  quality — the  warm  water  being 
renewed  until  all  the  bitter  taste  is  washed 
out  from  the  meal  sediment,  or  dough. 

This  is  then  taken,  and,  after  being 
cleansed  from  the  adhering  sand,  is  put  into 
cooking  baskets,  thinned  down  with  hot 
water  to  the  desired  condition,  and  cooked 
by  means  of  hot  stones  which  are  held  in  it 
with  two  sticks  for  tongs.  The  mush,  while 
cooking,  is  stirred  with  a  peculiar  stirring 
stick,  made  of  a  tough  oak  sprout,  doubled 
so  as  to  form  a  round,  open  loop  at  one  end, 
which  is  used  in  lifting  out  any  loose  stones. 
When  the  dough  is  well  cooked,  it  is  either 
left  en  masse  in  the  basket  or  scooped  out 
in  rolls  and  put  into  cold  water  to  cool  and 
harden  before  being  eaten.  Sometimes  the 
thick  paste  is  made  into  cakes  and  baked  on 
hot  rocks.  One  of  these  cakes,  when  rolled 
in  paper,  will  in  a  short  time  saturate  it 


44  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

with  oil.    This  acorn  food  is  probably  more 
nutritious  than  any  of  the  cereals. 

INDIAN  DOGS. 

The  Indian  dogs,  of  which  every  family 
had  several,  are  as  fond  of  the  acorn  food 
as  their  owners.  These  dogs  are  made  use- 
ful in  treeing  wild-cats,  California  lions 
and  gray  squirrels,  and  are  very  expert  in 
catching  ground  squirrels  by  intercepting 
them  when  away  from  their  burrows,  and 
when  the  Indians  drown  them  out  in  the 
early  spring  by  turning  water  from  the 
flooded  streams  into  their  holes. 

As  far  as  can  be  learned,  dogs  were 
about  the  only  domestic  animals  which  the 
\osemites,  and  other  adjacent  tribes  of 
Indians,  kept  for  use  before  the  country 
was  settled  by  the  white  people. 

NUTS  AND  BERRIES. 

Pine  nuts  were  another  important  article 
of  food,  and  were  much  prized  by  the  In- 
dians. They  are  very  palatable  and  nutri- 
tious, and  are  also  greatly  relished  by  white 
people  whenever  they  can  be  obtained.  The 
seeds  of  the  Digger  or  nut  pine  (Pinus 
Sabiniana)  were  the  ones  most  used  on  the 


FOOD  SUPPLY.  45 

western  side  of  the  Sierras,  although  the 
seeds  of  the  sugar  pine  (P.  Lambertiana) 
were  also  sometimes  eaten.  On  account  of 
their  soft  shell,  nuts  from  the  pinon 
pine  (P.  monophylla),  which  grows  princi- 
pally on  the  eastern  side  of  the  mountains, 
were  considered  superior  to  either  of  the 
other  kinds,  and  were  an  important  article 
of  barter  with  the  tribes  of  that  region. 
All  of  these  trees  are  very  prolific,  and  their 
crop  of  nuts  in  fruitful  years  has  been 
estimated  to  be  even  greater  than  the  enor- 
mous wheat  crop  of  California,  although  of 
course  but  a  very  small  portion  of  it  is  ever 
gathered.  Many  other  kinds  of  nuts  and 
seeds  were  also  eaten. 

The  principal  berries  used  by  the  Indians 
of  Yosemite  and  tribes  lower  down  in  the 
foothills  were  those  of  the  manzanita  ( Arc- 
to  staphylos  glauca).  They  are  about  the 
size  of  huckleberries,  of  a  light  brown  color, 
and  when  ripe  have  the  flavor  of  dried 
apples.  They  are  used  for  eating,  and  also 
to  make  a  kind  of  cider  for  drinking,  and 
for  mixing  with  some  food  preparations. 
Manzanita  is  the  Spanish  for  "  little  ap- 
ple,'7 and  this  shrub,  with  its  rich  red 


46  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

bark  and  pale  green  foliage,  is  perhaps  the 
most  beautiful  and  most  widely  distributed 
in  California.  Strawberries,  black  rasp- 
berries, elderberries,  wild  cherries  and  the 
fruit  of  the  Sierra  plum  (Prunus  sub  cor- 
data]  are  also  used  by  the  Indians,  but  wild 
edible  berries  are  not  as  plentiful  in  Cali- 
fornia as  they  are  in  the  Atlantic  States. 

GRASSHOPPERS   AND    WORMS. 

In  addition  to  the  staple  articles  of  food 
already  mentioned,  many  other  things  were 
eaten  when  they  could  be  obtained.  These 
included  grasshoppers,  certain  kinds  of 
large  tree  worms,  the  white  fungi  which 
grows  upon  the  oak,  mushrooms,  and  the 
larvae  and  pupae  of  ants  and  other  insects. 
The  pupae  of  a  certain  kind  of  fly  which 
breeds  extensively  on  the  shores  of  Mono 
Lake,  about  forty  miles  from  Yosemite,  was 
an  important  article  of  commerce  across 
the  mountains,  and  was  made  into  a  kind  of 
paste  called  ka-cha'-vee,  which  is  still  much 
relished  by  the  Indians,  and  is  a  prominent 
dish  at  their  feasts. 

The  manner  of  catching  grasshoppers  was 
to  dig  a  large  hole,  somewhat  in  the  shape 


Photograph  by  Fiske. 

A   WOOD    GATHERER. 

As   in   all   Indian   tribes,    the   women   do   most   of 
the   work. 


48  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

of  a  fly  trap,  with  the  bottom  larger  than 
the  opening  at  the  top,  so  that  the  insects 
oould  not  readily  get  out  of  it.  This  hole 
was  dug  in  the  center  of  a  meadow,  which 
was  then  surrounded  by  Indians  armed 
with  small  boughs,  who  beat  the  grasshop- 
pers towards  a  common  center  and  drove 
them  into  the  trap.  A  fire  was  then  kindled 
on  top  of  them,  and  after  they  had  been 
well  roasted  they  were  gathered  up  and 
stored  for  future  use. 

Other  articles  of  food  were  various  kinds 
of  roots,  grasses  and  herbage,  some  of 
which  were  cooked,  while  others  were  eaten 
in  their  natural  condition.  The  lupine 
\Lupinus  bicolor  and  other  species),  whose 
brilliant  flowers  are  such  a  beautiful  feature 
of  all  the  mountain  meadows  in  the  spring 
and  summer,  was  a  favorite  plant  for  mak- 
ing what  white  people  would  call  "  greens, " 
and  when  eaten  was  frequently  moistened 
with  some  of  the  manzanita  cider  already 
referred  to.  Among  the  roots  used  for  food 
were  those  of  the  wild  caraway  (Carum), 
wild  hyacinth  (Brodioea),  sorrel  (Oxalis}, 
and  camass  (Camassia  esculenta). 


RELIGIOUS  CEREMONIES  AND  BELIEFS. 

The  Indians  of  this  region,  in  common 
with  most,  if  not  all,  of  the  North  American 
aborigines,  were  of  a  highly  religious  tem- 
perament, most  devout  in  their  beliefs  and 
observances,  and  easily  wrought  upon  by 
the  priests  or  medicine  men  of  their  tribes. 
Elaborate  ceremonies  were  carried  out,  in 
which  all  of  the  details  were  highly  symbol- 
ical, and  some  of  their  curious  and  pictur- 
esque superstitions  were  responsible  for 
acts  of  cruelty  and  vengeance,  which  in 
many  cases  were  foreign  to  their  natural 
disposition. 

DANCES. 

Dancing  was  an  important  part  of  all 
religious  observances,  and  was  practiced 
purely  as  a  ceremonial,  and  never  for  pleas- 
ure or  recreation.  Both  men  and  women 
took  part,  the  men  executing  a  peculiar 
shuffling  step  which  involved  a  great  deal 
of  stamping  upon  the  ground  with  their 


50  INDIANS  OP  THE  YOSEMITE. 

bare  feet,  and  the  women  performing  a  cur- 
ious sideways,  swaying  motion.  Some  of 
tne  dancers  carried  wands  or  arrows,  and 
indulged  in  wild  gesticulations.  They  usu- 
ally circled  slowly  around  a  fire,  and  danced 
to  the  point  of  exhaustion,  when  others 
would  immediately  take  their  places.  The 
ceremony  was  accompanied  by  the  beating 
of  rude  drums,  and  by  a  monotonous  chant, 
which  was  joined  in  by  all  the  dancers. 

The  great  occasions  for  dancing  were 
before  going  to  war,  and  when  cremating 
the  bodies  of  their  dead.  The  war  dance 
was  probably  the  most  elaborate  in  costume 
and  other  details,  and  of  recent  years  the 
Indians  have  sometimes  given  public  ex- 
hibitions of  what  purported  to  be  war 
dances,  but  these  performances,  like  every- 
thing else  which  they  do  from  purely  mer- 
cenary motives,  are  very  poor  imitations  of 
the  originals,  and  it  is  doubtful  if  they  have 
ever  allowed  a  genuine  war  dance  to  be  wit- 
nessed by  white  men. 

FESTIVALS. 

The  various  tribes  in  the  vicinity  of 
Yosemite  Valley  are  accustomed  to  hold  a 


CEREMONIES  AND  BELIEFS.  51 

great  meeting  or  festiyal  once  a  year,  each 
tribe  taking  its  turn  as  hosts,  and  the  others 
sometimes  coming  from  considerable  dis- 
tances. At  these  meetings  there  are  dances 
and  other  ceremonials,  and  also  a  grand 
feast,  for  which  extensive  preparations  are 
made.  Another  feature  of  the  occasion  is 
the  presentation  of  gifts  to  the  visit- 
ing tribes,  consisting  of  money,  blankets, 
clothing,  baskets,  bead-work,  or  other  val- 
uable articles.  These  presents,  or  their 
equivalent,  no  matter  how  small  they  may 
be,  are  always  returned  to  the  givers  at  the 
next  annual  festival,  together  with  addi- 
tional gifts,  which,  in  turn,  must  be  given 
back  the  following  year,  and  so  on. 

At  these  gatherings  an  Indian  is  ap- 
pointed to  secure  and  keep  on  hand  a  good 
supply  of  wood  for  the  camp  fires,  and 
every  day  he  spreads  a  blanket  on  the 
ground  and  sits  on  it,  and  the  other  Indians 
throw  money,  clothing,  or  other  contribu- 
tions, into  the  blanket,  to  pay  him  and  his 
assistants  for  their  services.  At  other  times 
this  man  acts  as  a  messenger  or  news  car- 
rier— first  spreading  his  blanket  to  collect 


52  INDIANS  OF  THE  YO  SEMITE. 

his    fees,    and  then    starting    off    on    his 
mission. 

MARRIAGE. 

Many  of  the  Indians  in  Mariposa  and 
adjoining  counties  were  polygamists,  hav- 
ing two  or  three,  and  sometimes  more, 
wives.  Some  of  the  chiefs  and  head  men 
would  have  wives  from  several  of  the  adja- 
cent tribes,  which  had  a  tendency  to  estab- 
lish permanent  friendly  relations  among 
them. 

Every  man  who  took  a  young  woman  for 
his  wife  had  to  buy  her.  Young  women 
were  considered  by  their  parents  as  per- 
sonal chattels,  subject  to  sale  to  the  highest 
suitable  bidder,  and  the  payment  of  the 
price  constituted  the  main  part  of  the  mar- 
riage ceremony.  The  wife  was  then  the 
personal  property  of  the  husband,  which 
he  might  sell  or  gamble  away,  if  he  wished ; 
but  such  instances  were  said  to  be  very 
rare.  In  case  negotiations  for  a  marriage 
fell  through,  the  preliminary  payments 
were  scrupulously  returned  to  the  rejected 
suitor  by  the  parents. 

Even  a  widow,  independent  of  control  in 
the  matter  of  marriage,  if  she  consented  to 


ruitJi    \>>i   .Dare. 

A   YOUNG    YOSEMITE. 

The    babies    are    tied    to    their    baskets    to    make 
them  straight,  and  keep  them  out  of  mischief. 


54  -  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

become  a  man's  wife,  received  some 
compensation  herself  from  her  intended 
husband. 

It  is  said  that  in  their  marital  relations 
they  were  as  a  rule  strictly  faithful  to  each 
other.  If  the  woman  was  found  to  be  guilty 
of  unfaithfulness  to  her  husband,  the  pen- 
alty was  death.  Such  a  thing  as  a  man 
whipping  or  beating  his  wife  was  never 
known.  Whipping  under  any  circumstances 
was  considered  a  more  humiliating  and  dis- 
graceful punis'hment  than  death. 

Even  in  the  management  of  children, 
whipping  was  never  resorted  to  as  punish- 
ment for  disobedience.  In  fact,  children 
were  always  treated  in  such  a  kind,  patient, 
loving  manner,  that  disobedience  was  a 
fault  rarely  known.  The  pre-natal  maternal 
influence,  and  subsequent  treatement  after 
birth,  were  such  that  they  were  naturally 
patient  and  readily  submissive  to  kind 
parental  control. 

In  recent  years,  under  the  influence  and 
examples  often  seen  in  what  is  called  civil- 
ized life,  Indian  husbands  have  been  known 
to  beat  their  wives,  and  mothers  to  whip 
their  children. 


I 


Photograph  l)\j  Boy  sen. 

LENA   AND   VIRGIL. 

The    canopy    of    the    baby    basket    is    called    Cho- 
ko'-ni,    and    the    Royal    Arches,    from    their    re- 
semblance to  it,  have  also  received  this  name 
from  the  Indians. 


56  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

MEDICINE  MEN. 

At  the  time  of  the  settlement  of  Califor- 
nia by  the  whites,  every  Indian  tribe  had 
its  professional  doctors  or  medicine  men, 
who  also  acted  as  religious  leaders.  They 
were  the  confidential  counselors  of  the 
chiefs  and  head-men  of  the  tribes,  and  had 
great  influence  and  control  over  the  people. 
They  claimed  to  be  spiritual  mediums,  and 
to  have  communication  with  the  departed 
spirits  of  some  of  their  old  and  most  rever- 
ed chieftains  and  dear  friends,  now  in  a 
much  more  happy  condition  than  when  here 
in  earthly  life.  They  were  thought  to  be 
endowed  with  supernatural  powers,  not  on- 
ly in  curing  all  diseases  (except  those  due 
to  old  age),  but  also  in  making  a  well  per- 
sx)n  sick  at  their  pleasure,  even  at  a  dis- 
tance; but  when  their  sorcery  failed  to 
work  on  their  white  enemies  and  extermin- 
ate them,  they  lost  the  confidence  of  their 
followers  to  a  large  extent. 

With  the  invasion  of  the  white  settlers 
came  forced  changes  in  their  old  customs 
and  manner  of  living,  and  a  new  variety  of 
epidemic  and  other  diseases.  When  a  doc- 
tor failed  to  cure  these  diseases,  and  several 


CEREMONIES    AND    BELIEFS.  57 

deaths  occurred  in  quick  succession  in  a 
camp,  they  believed  the  doctor  was  under 
the  control  of  some  evil  spirit,  and  killed 
him. 

After  the  Indians  were  given  their  free- 
dom from  the  reservations  in  1855,  the  old 
ones,  subdued  and  broken-hearted,  sickened 
and  died  very  fast,  and  most  of  the  men 
doctors  were  killed  off  in  a  few  years. 
There  are  none  known  who  now  attempt  to 
act  in  that  capacity. 

There  are  still  some  women  doctors  who 
continue  to  practice  the  magic  art,  but  as 
there  are  now  but  very  few  Indians,  there 
is  not  so  much  sickness,  and  very  few 
deaths  in  a  year,  so  that  the  doctors  very 
rarely  forfeit  their  lives  by  many  of  their 
patients  dying  in  quick  succession. 

Their  most  common  mode  of  treatment  in 
cases  of  sickness  was  to  scarify  the  painful 
locality  with  the  sharp  edge  of  a  piece  of 
obsidian,  and  suck  out  the  blood  with  the 
mouth.  In  cases  of  headache,  the  forehead 
was  operated  on ;  in  a  case  of  colic  the  ab- 
domen was  treated  in  the  same  way,  as 
were  also  all  painful  swellings  on  any  part 
of  the  body. 


58  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

The  grand  object  of  the  doctor  was  to 
make  the  patient  and  family  firmly  believe 
that  his  course  of  treatment  was  removing 
the  cause  of  the  sickness.  To  aid  in 
strengthening  this  belief,  after  diagnosing 
tne  case,  and  before  commencing  opera- 
tions, he  would  quietly  retire  for  a  short 
time,  ostensibly  to  get  under  the  influence 
of  the  divine  healing  spirit,  but  in  reality  to 
fill  his  mouth  with  several  small  articles, 
such  as  bits  of  wood  or  stone ;  he  was  then 
ready  to  commence  treatment.  After  suck- 
ing and  spitting  pure  blood  a  few  times,  he 
began  to  spit  out  with  the  blood,  one  after 
another,  the  things  he  had  in  his  mouth,  at 
the  sight  of  which  all  the  attendants  would 
join  in  a  chorus  of  grunts  of  astonishment, 
and  the  doctor  would  pretend  to  be  very 
much  nauseated.  In  most  ordinary  cases 
two  or  three  treatments  effected  a  cure. 

The  doctors  also  made  use  of  certain  rare 
medicinal  plants  in  treating  some  diseases. 
The  Indian  women  have  great  faith  in 
charms  made  of  the  pungent  roots  of  some 
rare  plants  from  the  high  mountain  ranges, 
which  they  wear  on  strings  around  their 


CEREMONIES  AND  BELIEFS.  59 

necks,  or  on  a  string  of  beads,  to  protect 
them  from  sickness. 

In  cases  of  malignant  sores  or  ulcers  on 
any  part  of  the  body,  the  doctors  treated 
them  by  applying  dirt  or  earth,  and  in 
warm  weather  would  excavate  a  place  in 
tue  ground  and  put  the  patient  in  it,  either 
in  a  sitting  or  recumbent  position,  as  the 
nature  of  the  case  required,  and  cover  the 
affected  part  with  earth  for  several  hours 
daily.  Sometimes,  by  this  mode  of  treat- 
ment, wonderful  cures  were  made. 

In  all  cases,  if  a  doctor  failed  to  cure  a 
disease,  and  the  patient  died,  he  was  obliged 
to  refund  to  the  relatives  any  fee  which  he 
had  received  for  his  services. 

DISPOSING  OF  THE  DEAD. 

In  the  early  days  of  the  settlement  of  Cal- 
ifornia, it  seemed  to  be  the  universal  custom 
of  the  Indians  along  the  foothills  of  the 
Sierra  Nevada  range  of  mountains  to  burn 
the  bodies  of  their  dead. 

A  suitable  pile  of  readily  combustible 
wood  was  prepared.  The  body  was  taken 
charge  of  by  persons  chosen  to  perform  the 
last  sacred  rites,  and  firmly  bound  in  skins 


60  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

or  blankets,  and  then  placed  upon  the 
funeral  pyre,  with  all  the  personal  effects 
of  the  deceased,  together  with  numerous 
votive  offerings  from  friends  and  relatives. 
The  chief  mourners  of  the  occasion  seemed 
to  take  but  little  active  part  in  the  cere- 
monies. When  all  was  ready,  one  of  the 
assistants  would  light  the  fire,  and  the  terri- 
ble, wailing,  mournful  cry  would  commence, 
and  the  professional  chanters,  with  peculiar 
sidling  movements  and  frantic  gestures, 
would  circle  round  and  round  about  the 
burning  pile.  Occasionally,  on  arriving  at 
the  northwest  corner  of  the  pile,  they  would 
stop,  and,  pointing  to  the  West,  would  end 
a  crying  refrain  by  exclaiming  "  Him-i- 
la'-ha!"  When  these  became  exhausted, 
others  would  step  in  and  take  their  places, 
and  thus  keep  up  the  mournful  ceremony 
until  the  whole  pile  was  consumed. 

After  the  pile  had  cooled,  the  charred 
bones  and  ashes  were  gathered  up,  a  few 
pieces  of  bone  selected,  and  the  remainder 
buried.  Of  the  pieces  retained,  some  would 
be  sent  to  distant  relatives,  and  the  others 
pounded  to  a  fine  powder,  then  mixed  with 
pine  pitch  and  plastered  on  the  faces  of  the 


CEREMONIES  AND  BELIEFS.  61 

nearest  female  relatives  as  a  badge  of 
mourning,  to  be  kept  there  until  it  naturally 
wore  off.  Every  Indian  camp  used  to  have 
some  of  these  hideous  looking  old  women  in 
it  in  the  ' '  early  days. ' ' 

One  principal  reason  for  burning  the 
bodies  of  the  dead  was  the  belief  that  there 
is  an  evil  spirit,  waiting  and  watching  for 
the  animating  spirit  or  soul  to  leave  the 
body,  that  he  may  get  it  to  take  to  his  own 
world  of  darkness  and  misery.  By  burning 
the  perishable  body  they  thought  that  the 
immortal  soul  would  be  more  quickly  re- 
leased and  set  free  to  speed  to  the  happy 
spirit  world  in  the  El-o'-win,  or  far  distant 
West,  while  with  their  loud,  wailing  cries 
the  evil  spirit  was  kept  away. 

The  young  women  take  great  care  of  their 
long,  shiny,  black  hair,  of  which  they  all 
feel  very  proud,  as  adding  much  to  their 
personal  beauty,  and  they  seldom  have  it  cut 
before  marriage.  But  upon  the  death  of  a 
husband  the  wife  has  her  hair  all  cut  off  and 
burned  with  his  body,  so  that  he  may  still 
have  it  in  his  future  spirit  home,  to  love  and 
caress  as  a  memento  of  his  living  earth-wife. 


•3 
O 

o 


H    O 

« 


< 
M  >> 


CEREMONIES  AND  BELIEFS.  63 

These  Indians  believe  that  everything  on 
earth,  both  natural  and  artificial,  is  endow- 
ed with  an  immortal  spirit,  which  is  inde- 
structible, and  that  whatever  personal  prop- 
erty or  precious  gifts  are  burned,  either 
with  the  body  or  in  later  years  for  the  de- 
parted friend's  benefit,  will  be  received  and 
made  use  of  in  the  spirit  world.  In  recent 
\ears  the  Yosemites  and  other  remnants  of 
tribes  closely  associated  with  them,  have 
adopted  the  custom  of  the  white  people,  and 
bury  their  dead.  The  fine,  expensive 
blankets,  and  most  beautifully  worked 
baskets,  which  have  been  kept  sacredly  in 
hiding  for  many  years,  to  be  buried  with 
the  owner,  are  now  cut  into  small  frag- 
ments before  being  deposited  in  the  ground, 
for  fear  some  white  person  will  desecrate 
the  grave  by  digging  them  up  and  carrying 
them  away. 

There  are  no  people  in  the  world  who 
show  more  reverence  for  their  dead,  or  hold 
their  memory  more  sacred,  than  these  so- 
called  ' '  Digger ' '  Indians.  After  being  re- 
leased from  the  reservations  they  kept 
themselves  in  abject  poverty  for  many 
years  by  sacrificing  their  best  blankets, 


64  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITB. 

baskets  and  clothing  in  the  devouring 
flames  of  a  fire  kindled  for  that  purpose, 
when  holding  their  annual  mourning  festi- 
vals in  memory  of  their  dead  friends. 

EELIGIOUS   BELIEFS. 

The  old  Indians  are  all  very  reticent 
regarding  their  religious  belief  s.  They  hold 
them  too  sacred  to  be  exposed  to  possible 
ridicule,  and  it  is  therefore  very  diffi- 
cult to  get  information  from  them  by  direct 
questions. 

They  seem,  however,  to  have  a  vague,  in- 
distinct belief  or  tradition  that  their  orig- 
inal ancestors,  in  the  long  forgotten  past, 
dwelt  in  a  better  and  much  more  desirable 
country  than  this,  in  the  El-o'-win,  or  dis- 
tant West,  and  that  by  some  misfortune  or 
great  calamity  they  were  separated  from 
that  happy  land,  and  became  wanderers  in 
this  part  of  the  world.  They  also  believe 
that  the  spirits  of  all  good  Indians  will  be 
permitted,  after  death,  to  go  back  to  that 
happy  country  of  their  ancestors'  origin; 
but  that  the  spirits  of  bad  Indians  have  to 
serve  another  earth  life  in  the  form  of  a 
grizzly  bear,  as  a  punishment  for  their 


CEREMONIES  AND  BELIEFS.  65 

former  crimes.  Hence,  no  Indians  ever  eat 
bear  meat  if  they  know  it. 

All  the  old  Indians  are  spiritualists,  and 
very  superstitious  in  their  religious  beliefs. 
One  special  tenet  is  that  if  one  of  their  rela- 
tives or  friends  has  been  murdered,  he  will 
not  receive  them  on  terms  of  friendship  in 
the  spirit  world  unless  they  revenge  his 
death,  either  by  killing  the  murderer  or 
some  one  of  the  same  blood.  This  belief 
sometimes  results  in  an  entirely  innocent 
person  being  put  to  death. 

They  all  have  a  great  fear  of  evil  spirits, 
which  they  believe  have  the  power  to  do 
them  much  harm  and  defeat  their  undertak- 
ings. They  also  have  a  fairly  distinct  idea 
of  a  Diety  or  Great  Spirit,  who  never  does 
them  any  harm,  and  whose  home  is  in  the 
liappy  land  of  their  ancestors  in  the  West. 


NATIVE  INDUSTRIES. 

The  Yosemites  and  other  kindred  or  ad- 
jacent tribes  have  been  branded  as  "Dig- 
gers," and  are  generally  thought  to  be  the 
lowest  class  of  Indians  in  America,  but  in 
some  lines  of  artistic  work  they  excelled  all 
other  tribes.  For  example,  their  basketry 
work,  for  domestic  and  sacred  purposes, 
and  their  bows  and  arrows,  were  of  very 
superior  workmanship  and  fine  finish. 

BASKETKY   AND   BEAD   WORK. 

Many  years  ago  the  chief  industry  of  the 
Indian  women,  aside  from  their  other 
domestic  duties,  was  the  making  of  baskets. 
They  made  a  great  variety  of  shapes  and 
sizes  for  their  common  use,  and  also  many 
of  a  more  artistic  design  and  finer  finish  for 
the  sacred  purpose  of  being  burned  or  bur- 
ied with  their  bodies,  or  that  of  some  rela- 
tive or  dear  friend,  after  death.  The  bas- 
kets devoted  to  this  special  purpose  are  the 
finest  made,  but  are  very  seldom  seen  by 
any  white  person,  and  are  not  for  sale  at 


NATIVE  INDUSTRIES.  69 

any  price.  This  finest  style  of  work  seems 
to  have  been  made  a  specialty  by  certain  of 
the  most  artistic  workers  in  each  tribe. 

At  the  present  time,  in  their  more  mod- 
ern style  of  living,  they  do  not  require  so 
many  baskets,  and  the  industry  of  making 
them  is  fast  on  the  decline.  Some  of  the 
old  women,  however,  still  continue  to  make 
such  as  are  required  for  their  own  use,  and 
a  few  others  for  sale. 

Most  of  the  ornamental  figures  and  de- 
signs worked  into  the  finest  basketry  are 
symbolical  in  character,  and  of  so  ancient 
an  origin  that  Indians  of  the  present 'day 
do  not  know  what  many  of  them  are 
intended  to  represent.  They  have  simply 
been  copied  from  time  immemorial,with  the 
idea  that  they  were  necessary  for  the  com- 
plete finish  and  beauty  of  the  article  made. 

In  recent  years  they  sometimes  make  use 
of  more  modern  styles  of  ornamentation, 
which  they  see  in  print. 

Many  of  the  young  women  are  now  giv- 
ing their  attention  to  making  fancy  bead 
work,  in  the  form  of  ornamental  belts  and 
hat-bands,  but  this  is  an  industry  of  very 
modern  origin.  Some  of  them  are  employed 


SI 


NATIVE  INDUSTRIES.  71 

by  white  people  to  do  laundry  and  other 
work,  and  any  labor  of  this  kind  pays  them 
better  than  making  baskets  for  sale.  Forty 
years  ago  a  finely  made  basket  could  have 
been  bought  for  less  than  ten  dollars.  At 
present,  if  the  time  spent  in  getting  and 
preparing  the  necessary  materials,  and  in 
working  them  into  the  basket,  were  paid  for 
at  the  same  rate  per  day  that  a  young 
woman  receives  for  doing  washing  in  the 
hotel  laundry,  or  for  private  families,  it 
would  amount  to  over  one  hundred  dollars. 
Most  of  the  baskets  made  for  domestic 
use  are  so  closely  woven  that  they  are  prac- 
tically water-tight,  and  are  used  for  cooking 
and  similar  purposes.  Over  on  the  eastern 
side  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains,  near 
the  dry,  desert  country,  the  Indians  make 
some  of  their  baskets  in  the  form  of  jugs  of 
various  sizes.  These  are  smeared  over  with 
a  pitch  composition,  which  renders  them 
perfectly  water-tight,  and  they  are  used  for 
carrying  water  when  traveling  over  those 
desolate,  sandy  wastes. 

BOWS  AND  AKEOWS. 

The  Indian  men  showed  no  less  ingenuity 
and  artistic  skill  in  their  special  lines  of 


72  INDIANS   OP  THE   YOSEMITE. 

work  than  the  women,  especially  in  the 
manufacture  of  their  bows  and  arrows,  in 
the  making  of  fish  lines  and  coarser  twine 
out  of  the  soft,  flexible  bark  of  the  milk- 
weed (Asclepias  speciosa),  and  in  making 
other  useful  implements  and  utensils  with 
the  very  limited  means  at  their  disposal. 

Their  bows  were  made  of  a  branch  of  the 
incense  cedar  (Libocedrus  decurrens),  or  of 
the  California  nutmeg  (Tumion  Cali- 
fornicum[Torreya]  ),made  flat  on  the  outer 
side,  and  rounded  smooth  on  the  inner  or 
concave  side  when  the  bow  is  strung  for 
use.  The  flat,  outer  side  was  covered  with 
sinew,  usually  that  from  the  leg  of  a  deer, 
steeped  in  hot  water  until  it  became  soft 
and  glutinous,  and  then  laid  evenly  and 
smoothly  over  the  wood,  and  so  shaped  at 
the  ends  as  to  hold  the  string  in  place. 
When  thoroughly  dry  the  sinew  contracted 
so  that  the  bow  when  not  strung  was  con- 
cave on  the  outer  side. 

When  not  in  use  the  bow  was  always  left 
unstrung.  To  string  it  for  use,  it  was 
necessary  in  cold  weather  to  warm  it,  thus 
making  it  more  elastic  and  easily  bent.  The 


A  BASKET  MAKER. 

She  is  weaving-  a  burden  basket.  The  one  to  the 
left  is  for  cooking,  and  a  baby  basket  stands 
against  the  tent. 


74  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

best  strings  were  also  made  of  sinew,  or  of 
pax- wax  cartilage,  for  their  finest  bows. 

The  arrows  were  made  of  reeds  and 
various  kindsof  wood,  including  the  syringa 
(Philadelphus  Leivisii)  and  a  small  shrub 
or  tree  which  the  Indians  called  Le-ham'-i- 
tee,  or  arrow-wood,  and  which  grew  quite 
plentifully  in  what  is  now  known  as  Indian 
Canyon,  near  the  Yosemite  Falls. 

The  finest  arrows  were  furnished  with 
points  made  of  obsidian,  or  volcanic  glass, 
which  was  obtained  in  the  vicinity  of  Mono 
Lake  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  Sierras.  It 
required  great  care  and  delicate  skill  to 
work  this  brittle  material  into  the  fine 
sharp  points,  and  the  making  of  them  seem- 
ed to  be  a  special  business  or  trade  with 
some  of  the  old  men.  Arrows  furnished 
with  these  points  were  only  used  in  hunt- 
ing large  game,  or  in  hostile  combat  with 
enemies ;  for  common  use,  in  hunting  small 
game,  the  hard  wooden  arrow  was  merely 
sharpened  to  a  point. 

The  butt,  or  end  used  on  the  string,  was 
furnished  with  three  or  four  short  strips  of 
feathers  taken  from  a  hawk's  wing,  and 
fastened  on  lengthwise.  These  strips  of 


NATIVE  INDUSTRIES.  75 

feathers  are  supposed  to  aid  in  the  more 
accurate  flight  of  the  arrow  when  shot  from 
the  bow. 

When  out  on  a  hunt  the  Indian  carried 
his  bow  strung  ready  for  use,  and  his  bun- 
dle of  assorted  arrows  in  a  quiver  made  of 
the  skin  of  a  small  fox,  wild-cat  or  fisher, 
hung  conveniently  over  his  shoulder. 

These  primitive  weapons,  which  were  in 
universal  use  by  the  Yosemite  Indians  fifty 
years  ago,  are  now  never  seen  except  in 
some  collection  of  Indian  relics  and  curios. 

Other  articles  manufactured  by  these 
tribes  were  stone  hammers,  and  also  others 
made  from  the  points  of  deer  horns  mount- 
ed on  wooden  handles,  which  they  used  in 
delicately  chipping  the  brittle  obsidian  in 
forming  arrowheads.  Rude  musical  instru- 
ments, principally  drums  and  flageolets, 
were  also  made. 


MYTHS  AND  LEGENDS. 

The  Indians  of  the  Yosemite  Valley  and 
vicinity  have  a  great  fund  of  mythological 
lore,  which  has  been  handed  down  verbally 
from  generation  to  generation  for  hundreds 
of  years,  but  they  are  very  reluctant  to 
speak  of  these  legends  to  white  people,  and 
it  is  extremely  difficult  to  get  reliable  in- 
formation on  the  subject.  Moreover,  the 
Indians  most  familiar  with  them  have 
not  a  sufficient  knowledge  of  the  English 
language  to  be  able  to  express  their  ideas 
clearly. 

Many  Yosemite  legends  have  been  pub- 
lished at  different  times  and  in  various 
forms,  and  it  is  probable  that  most  of  them 
have  had  at  least  a  foundation  in  real  In- 
dian myths,  but  many  are  obviously  fanci- 
ful in  some  particulars,  and  it  is  impossible 
to  tell  how  much  is  of  Indian  origin  and 
how  much  is  due  to  poetic  embellishment. 
When  asked  about  some  of  these  legends, 
many  years  ago,  one  of  the  old  Yosemite 


MYTHS  AND  LEGENDS.  77 

Indians  remarked  contemptuously,  "White 
man  too  much  lie. ' ' 

*0n  the  other  hand,  red  men  as  well  as 
white  men  are  sometimes  given  to  romanc- 
ing, and  I  have  known  of  cases  where 
"legends"  would  be  manufactured  on  the 
spur  of  the  moment  by  some  young  Indian 
to  satisfy  an  importunate  and  credulous 
questioner,  to  the  keen  but  suppressed 
amusement  of  other  Indians  present. 

It  will  therefore  be  seen  that  this  sub- 
ject is  surrounded  with  some  difficulty,  and 
it  must  not  be  understood  that  the  legends 
here  given  are  vouched  for  as  of  wholly  In- 
dian origin.  Some  of  them,  notably  those 
of  the  Tul-tok'-a-na  and  the  second  legend 
of  Tis-sa'-ack,  have  been  accepted  by  emi- 
nent ethnologists,  and  are  believed  to  be 
purely  aboriginal,  while  others  have  doubt- 
less been  somewhat  idealized  in  translation 
and  in  the  course  of  numerous  repetitions. 

The  legend  of  To-tau-kon-nu'-la  and 
Tis-sa'-ack  is  made  up  of  fragments  of 
mythological  lore  obtained  from  a  number 
of  old  Indians  at  various  times  during  the 
past  fifty  years.  It  varies  somewhat  from 
other  legends  which  have  been  published 


78  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

regarding  these  same  characters,  but  it  is 
well  known  that  the  Indians  living  in 
Yosemite  in  recent  years  are  of  mixed  tribal 
origin  and  do  not  all  agree  as  to  the  tradi- 
tional history  of  the  region,  nor  the  names 
of  the  prominent  scenic  features,  nor  even 
of  the  Valley  itself.  And  this  largely  ac- 
counts for  the  fact  that  some  of  the  legends 
do  not  harmonize  with  each  other  in  details 
or  in  sentiment.  All  of  them,  however,  are 
picturesque,  and  they  certainly  give  an 
added  interest  to  the  natural  beauties  and 
wonders  with  which  they  are  associated. 

LEGEND    OF    TO-TAU-KON-NIj'-LA   AND    TIS- 

SA'-ACK. 

Innumerable  moons  and  snows  have 
passed  since  the  Great  Spirit  guided  a  little 
band  of  his  favorite  children  into  the  beau- 
tiful vale  of  Ah-wah'-nee,*  and  bid  them 
stop  and  rest  from  their  long  and  weary 
wanderings,  which  had  lasted  ever  since 
tney  had  been  separated  by  the  great  waters 
from  the  happy  land  of  their  forefathers  in 
the  far  distant  El-o'-win  (West). 


*  Yosemite  Valley. 


Photoffraph  by  Boysen. 

MARY. 

Daughter  of  Captain  John,  one  of  the  last  Chiefs 
of  the  Yosemites. 


80  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

Here  they  found  food  in  abundance  for 
all.  The  rivers  gave  them  plenty  of  la-pe'-si 
(trout).  They  found  in  the  meadows  sweet 
h'a'-ker  (clover),  and  sour  yu-yu'-yu-mah 
(oxalis)  for  spring  medicine,  and  sweet 
toori-gy  and  other  edible  roots  in  abun- 
dance. The  trees  and  bushes  yielded  acorns, 
pine  nuts,  fruits  and  berries.  In  the  forests 
were  herds  of  he'-ker  (deer)  and  other  ani- 
mals, which  gave  meat  for  food  and  skins 
for  clothing  and  beds.  And  here  they  lived 
and  multiplied,  and,  as  instructed  by  their 
medicine  men,  worshipped  the  Great  Spirit 
which  gave  them  life,  and  the  sun  which 
warmed  and  made  them  happy. 

They  also  kept  in  memory  the  happy  land 
of  their  forefathers.  The  story  was  told  by 
the  old  people  to  the  young,  and  they  again 
told  it  to  their  children  from  generation  to 
generation,  and  they  all  believed  that  after 
death  their  spirits  would  return  to  dwell 
forever  in  that  distant  country. 

They  prospered  and  built  other  towns  out- 
side of  Ah-wah'-nee,  and  became  a  great 
nation.  They  learned  wisdom  by  experience 
and  by  observing  how  the  Great  Spirit 
taught  the  animals  and  insects  to  live,  and 


MYTHS  AND  LEGENDS.  81 

they  believed  that  their  children  could  ab- 
sorb the  cunning  of  the  wild  creatures.  And 
so  the  young  son  of  their  chief  tain  was  made 
to  sleep  in  the  skins  of  the  beaver  and  coy- 
ote, that  he  might  grow  wise  in  building, 
and  keen  of  scent  in  following  game.  On 
some  days  he  was  fed  with  la-pe'-si  that  he 
might  become  a  good  swimmer,  and  on  oth- 
er days  the  eggs  of  the  great  to-tau'-kon 
(crane)  were  his  food,  that  he  might  grow 
tall  and  keen  gf  sight,  and  have  a  clear, 
ringing  voice.  He  was  also  fed  on  the  flesh 
of  the  he'-ker  that  he  might  be  fleet  of  foot, 
and  on  that  of  the  great  yo-sem'-i-te  (griz- 
zly bear)  to  make  him  powerful  in  combat. 

And  the  little  boy  grew  up  and  became  a 
great  and  wise  chieftain,  and  he  was  also  a 
rain  wizard,  and  brought  timely  rains  for 
the  crops. 

As  was  the  custom  in  giving  names  to  all 
Indians,  his  name  was  changed  from  time 
to  time,  as  his  character  developed,  until 
he  was  called  Choo'-too-se-ka',  meaning  the 
Supreme  Good.  His  grand  o'-chum 
(house)  was  built  at  the  base  of  the  great 


82  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

rock  called  To-tau-kon-nu'-la,*  because  the 
great  to-tau'-kons  made  their  nests  and 
raised  their  young  in  a  meadow  at  its  sum- 
mit, and  their  loud  ringing  cries  resounded 
over  the  whole  Valley. 

As  the  moons  and  snows  passed,  this 
great  rock  and  all  the  great  rocky  walls 
around  the  Valley  grew  in  height,  and  the 
hills  became  high  mountains. 

After  a  time  Choo'-too-se-ka'  built  him- 
self a  great  palace  o'-chum  on  the  summit 
of  the  rock  To-tau-kon-nu'-la,  and  had  his 
great  chair  of  state  a  little  west  of  his  pal- 
ace, where  on  all  festival  occasions  he  could 
overlook  and  talk  to  the  great  multitude 
below;  and  the  remains  of  this  chair  are 
still  to  be  seen. 

Choo'-too-se-ka'  was  then  named  To-tau- 
kon-nu'la,  because  he  had  built  his  o'-chum 
on  the  summit  of  the  great  rock  and  taken 
the  place  of  the  to-tau'-kons.  He  had  no 
wife,  but  all  the  women  served  him  in  his 
domestic  needs,  as  he  was  their  great  chief, 
and  his  wishes  were  paramount.  The  many 
valuable  donations  which  he  received  from 


*  El  Capitan. 


MYTHS  AND  LEGENDS.  83 

liis  people  at  the  great  annual  festivals 
made  him  wealthy  beyond  all  personal 
wants,  and  he  gave  freely  to  the  needy. 

One  day,  while  standing  on  the  top  of  the 
great  dome*  above  the  south  wall  of  the 
Valley,  watching  the  great  herds  of  deer,  he 
saw  some  strange  people  approaching, 
bearing  heavy  burdens.  They  were  fairer 
of  skin,  and  their  clothing  was  different 
from  that  of  his  people,  and  when  they 
drew  near  he  asked  them  who  they  were 
and  whence  they  came. 

And  a  woman  replied,  "I  am  Tis-sa'-ack, 
and  these  are  some  of  my  people.  We  come 
from  cat' -tan  chu'-huch  (far  South).  I 
have  heard  of  your  great  wisdom  and 
goodness,  and  have  come  to  see  you  and 
your  people.  We  bring  you  presents  of 
many  fine  baskets,  and  beads  of  many  col- 
ors, as  tokens  of  our  friendship.  When  we 
have  rested  and  seen  your  people  and  beau- 
tiful valley  we  will  return  to  our  home. ' ' 

To-tau-kon-nu'-la  was  much  pleased  with 
his  fair  visitor,  and  built  a  large  o'-chum 
for  her  and  her  companions  on  the  summit 

*  Sentinel  Dome. 


Pholoyrapli   hi/  /'.'xAv  . 

HALF    DOME    (TIS-SA'-ACK), 

5,000  Feet. 

Named  for  a  woman  in  Indian  mythology  who 
was  turned  to  stone  for  quarreling  with  her 
husband.  See  "Legend  of  Tis-sa'-ack." 


MYTHS  AND  LEGENDS.  85 

of  the  great  dome  at  the  east  end  of  the 
Valley,*  and  this  dome  still  retains  her 
name. 

And  she  tarried  there  and  taught  the 
women  of  Ah-wah'-nee  how  to  make  the 
beautiful  baskets  which  they  still  make  at 
the  present  day ;  and  To-tau-kon-nu'-la  vis- 
ited her  daily,  and  became  charmed  with  her 
loveliness,  and  wanted  her  to  remain  and 
be  his  wife,  but  she  denied  him,  saying,  i '  I 
must  return  to  my  people, "  and,  when 
he  still  persisted,  she  left  her  o'-chum  in  the 
night  and  was  never  seen  again.  And  the 
love-stricken  chieftain  forgot  his  people, 
and  went  in  search  of  her,  and  they  waited 
manymoons  for  his  return  and  mourned  his 
long  absence,  but  they  never  saw  him  more. 

This  was  the  beginning  of  a  series  of 
calamities  which  nearly  destroyed  the  great 
tribe  of  Ah-wah-nee'-chees.  First  a  great 
drouth  prevailed,  and  the  crops  failed,  and 
the  streams  of  water  dried  up.  The  deer 
went  wild  and  wandered  away.  Then  a 
dark  cloud  of  smoke  arose  in  the  East  and 
obscured  the  sun,  so  that  it  gave  no  heat, 


*  Half  Dome. 


.86  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

and  many  of  the  people  perished  from  cold 
and  hunger.  Then  the  earth  shook  terribly 
and  groaned  with  great  pain,  and  enormous 
rocks  fell  from  the  walls  around  Ah-wah'- 
nee.  The  great  dome  called  Tis-sa'-ack 
was  burst  asunder,  and  half  of  it  fell  into 
the  Valley.  A  fire  burst  out  of  the  earth 
in  the  East,  and  the  ca'-lah  (snow)  on 
the  sky  mountains  was  changed  to  water, 
which  flowed  down  and  formed  the  Lake 
Ah-wei'-yah.*  And  all  the  streams  were 
filled  to  overflowing,  and  still  the  waters 
rose,  and  there  was  a  great  flood,  so  that 
a  large  part  of  the  Valley  became  a 
lake,  and  many  persons  were  drowned. 

After  a  time  the  Great  Spirit  took  pity  on 
his  children,  and  the  dark  cloud  of  smoke 
disappeared,  the  sun  warmed  the  Valley 
again  into  new  life,  and  the  few  people  who 
ivere  left  had  plenty  of  food  once  more. 

Many  moons  afterwards  there  appeared 
on  the  face  of  the  great  rock  To-tau-kon- 
nu'-la  the  figure  of  a  man  in  a  flowing  robe, 
and  with  one  hand  extended'  toward  the 
West,  in  which  direction  he  appears  to  be 


*  Mirror  Lake. 


MYTHS  AND  LEGENDS.  87 

traveling.  This  figure  was  interpreted  to  be 
the  picture  of  the  great  lost  Chieftain,  indi- 
cating that  he  had  gone  to  the  "happy  hunt- 
ing grounds "  of  his  ancestors,  and  it  is 
looked  upon  with  great  veneration  and  awe 
by  the  few  Indians  still  living  in  Yosemite. 
At  about  the  same  time  the  face  of  the 
beautiful  Tis-sa'-ack  appeared  on  the  great 
flat  side  of  the  dome  which  bears  her  name, 
and  the  Indians  recognized  her  by  the  way 
in  which  her  dark  hair  was  cut  straight 
across  her  forehead  and  fell  down  at  the 
sides,  which  was  then  considered  among  the 
Yosemites  as  the  acme  of  feminine  beauty, 
and  is  so  regarded  to  this  day. 

ANOTHER  LEGEND  OF  TIS-SA'-ACK. 

Tis-sa'-ack  and  her  husband  traveled 
from  a  far-off  country,  and  entered  the  Val- 
ley footsore  and  weary.  She  walked  ahead, 
carrying  a  great  conical  burden-basket, 
which  was  supported  by  a  band  across  her 
forehead,  and  was  filled  with  many  things. 
He  followed  after,  carrying  a  rude  staff  in 
his  hand  and  a  roll  of  woven  skin  blankets 
over  his  shoulder.  They  had  come  across 
the  mountains  and  were  very  thirsty,  and 


MYTHS  AND  LEGENDS.  89 

they  hurried  to  reach  the  Valley,  where  they 
knew  there  was  water.  The  woman  was 
still  far  in  advance  when  she  reached  the 
Lake  Ah-wei'yah,*  and  she  dipped  up  the 
water  in  her  basket  and  drank  long  and 
deep.  She  was  so  thirsty  that  she  even 
drank  up  all  the  water  in  the  lake  and 
drained  it  dry  before  her  husband  arrived. 
And  because  the  lake  was  dry  there  came  a 
terrible  drouth  in  the  Valley,  and  the  soil 
was  dried  up  and  nothing  grew. 

And  the  husband  was  much  displeased 
oecause  the  woman  had  drunk  up  all  the 
water  and  left  none  for  him,  and  he  became 
so  angry  that  he  forgot  the  customs  of  his 
people  and  beat  the  woman  with  his  staff. 
She  ran  away  from  him,  but  he  followed  her 
and  beat  her  yet  more.  And  she  wept,  and 
in  her  anger  she  turned  and  reviled  her  hus- 
band, and  threw  ner  basket  at  him.  And 
while  they  were  in  this  attitude,  one  facing 
the  other,  they  were  turned  into  stone  for 
tneir  wickedness,  and  there  they  still  re- 
main. The  upturned  basket  lies  beside  the 
husband,  where  the  woman  threw  it,  and 


*  Mirror  Lake. 


90  INDIANS  OP  THE  YOSEMITE. 

the  woman's  face  is  tear  stained  with  long 
dark  lines  trailing  down. 

Half-Dome  is  the  woman  Tis-sa'-ack  and 
North  Dome  is  her  husband,  while  beside 
the  latter  is  a  smaller  dome  whicn  is  still 
called  Basket  Dome  to  this  day. 

LEGEND  OF  THE  GRIZZLY  BEAR. 

The  significance  and  derivation  of  the 
name  "Yosemite,"  as  given  by  old  Tenei'- 
ya,  chief  of  the  tribe,  have  been  explained 
in  another  chapter,  but  there  is  also  a 
legendary  account  of  its  origin,  which  may 
be  of  interest. 

Long,  long  ago,  when  the  remote  ances- 
tors of  the  Yosemite  Indians  dwelt  peace- 
fully in  the  valley  called  Ah-wah'-nee,*  one 
of  the  stalwart  young  braves  of  the  tribe 
went  early  one  morning  to  spear  some  fish 
in  the  lake  Ah-wei'-yah.f  Before  reaching 
his  destination  he  was  confronted  by  a  huge 
grizzly  bear,  who  appeared  from  behind  one 
of  the  enormous  boulders  in  that  vicinity, 
and  savagely  disputed  his  passage. 

Being  attacked  in  this  unexpected  man- 
ner, the  Indian  defended  himself  to  the  best 


*  Yosemite  Valley. 
t  Mirror  Lake. 


Photograph  ~by  Fiske. 

NORTH    DOME     (TO-KO'-YA), 

3,725   Feet. 

This  rock  is  believed  by  the  Indians  to  represent 
Tis-sa'-ack's  husband,  turned  into  stone  for 
beating1  his  wife.  The  lower  dome  to  the 
right  is  the  basket  which  she  threw  at  him. 
See  "Leg-end  of  Tis-sa'-ack." 


92  INDIANS  OP  THE  YOSEMITE. 

of  his  ability,  .using  for  the  purpose  the 
dead  limb  of  a  tree  which  was  near  at  hand, 
and,  after  a  long  and  furious  struggle,  in 
which  he  was  badly  wounded,  he  at  length 
succeeded  in  killing  the  bear. 

His  exploit  was  considered  so  remark- 
able by  the  rest  of  the  tribe  that  they  called 
him  Yo-sem'-i-te  (meaning  a  full-grown 
grizzly  bear),  in  honor  of  his  achievement, 
and  this  name  was  transmitted  to  his  chil- 
dren, and  eventually  to  the  whole  tribe. 

LEGEND   OF    THE    TUL-TOK'-A-NA. 

There  were  once  two  little  boys  living  in 
the  Valley  of  Ah-wah'-nee,  who  went  down 
to  the  river  to  swim.  When  they  had  finished 
their  bath  they  went  on  shore  and  lay  down 
on  a  large  boulder  to  dry  themselves  in  the 
sun.  While  lying  there  they  fell  asleep,  and 
slept  so  soundly  that  they  never  woke  up 
again.  Through  many  moons  and  many 
snows  they  slept,  and  while  they  slept  the 
great  rock*  on  which  they  lay  was  slowly 
rising,  little  by  little,  until  it  soon  lifted 
them  up  out  of  sight,  and  their  friends 
searched  for  them  everywhere  without  suc- 


*  El    Capitan. 


bu  F<>!<  11. 
EL  CAPITAN  (TO-TAU-KON-NU'-LA), 

3,300   Feet. 

The  Indians  believe  that  this  great  rock  grew 
from  a  small  boulder.  See  "Legend  of  the 
Tul-tok'-a-na." 


94  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

cess.  Thus  they  were  carried  up  into  the 
blue  sky,  until  they  scraped  their  faces 
against  the  moon;  and  still  they  slept  on. 

Then  all  the  animals  assembled  to  bring 
down  the  little  boys  from  the  top  of  the 
great  rock.  Each  animal  sprang  up  the 
face  of  the  rock  as  far  as  he  could.  The 
mouse  could  only  spring  a  hand's  breadth, 
the  rat  two  hands'  breadths,  the  raccoon  a 
little  more,  and  so  on.  The  grizzly  bear 
made  a  great  leap  up  the  wall,  but  fell  back 
like  all  the  others,  without  reaching  the  top. 
Finally  came  the  lion,  who  jumped  up 
farther  than  any  of  the  others,  but  even  he 
fell  back  and  could  not  reach  the  top. 

Then  came  the  tul-tok'-a-na,  the  insignifi- 
cant measuring  worm,  who  was  despised  by 
all  the  other  creatures,  and  began  to  creep 
up  the  face  of  the  rock.  Step  by  step,  little 
by  little,  he  measured  his  way  up  until  he 
was  soon  above  the  lion's  jump,  and  still 
farther  and  farther,  until  presently  he  was 
out  of  sight ;  and  still  he  crawled  up  and  up, 
day  and  night,  through  many  moons,  and  at 
length  he  reached  the  top,  and  took  the  little 
boys  and  brought  them  safely  down  to  the 
ground.  And  therefore  the  rock  was  named 


MYTHS  AND  LEGENDS.  95 

for  the  measuring  worm,  and  was  called 
Tu-tok-a-nu'-la. 

LEGEND  OF  GROUSE  LAKE. 

I  will  here  relate  a  personal  experience 
which  occurred  in  September,  1857,  while 
out  with  a  large  party  of  Indians  on  a  deer 
hunt  in  the  mountains. 

One  day,  after  a  long  tramp,  I  stopped  to 
rest  by  the  side  of  a  small  lake  about  eight 
miles  from  the  present  site  of  Wawona,  and 
I  then  named  it  Grouse  Lake  on  account  of 
the  great  number  of  grouse  found  there. 
Very  soon  a  party  of  Indians  came  along 
carrying  some  deer,  and  stopped  on  the  op- 
posite side  of  the  lake  to  rest  and  get  some 
water.  Soon  after  they  had  started  again 
for  their  camp  I  heard  a  distinct  wailing 
cry,  somewhat  like  the  cry  of  a  puppy  when 
lost,  and  I  thought  the  Indians  must  have 
left  one  of  their  young  dogs  behind. 

When  I  joined  the  Indians  in  camp  that 
night  I  inquired  of  them  about  the  sound  I 
had  heard.  They  replied  that  it  was  not  a 
dog — that  a  long  time  ago  an  Indian  boy 
had  been  drowned  in  the  lake,  and  that 
every  time  any  one  passed  there  he  always 
cried  after  them,  and  that  no  one  dared  to 


96  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

go  in  the  lake;  for  lie  would  catch  them  by 
the  legs  and  pull  them  down  and  they  would 
be  drowned.  I  then  concluded  that  it  must 
have  been  some  unseen  water-fowl  that 
made  the  cry,  and  at  that  time  I  thought 
that,  the  Indians  were  trying  to  impose  on 
my  credulity,  but  I  am  now  convinced  that 
they  fully  believed  the  story  they  told  me. 
Po-ho'-no  Lake,  the  headwaters  of  the 
Bridal  Veil  Creek,  was  also  thought  to  be 
haunted  by  troubled  spirits,  which  affected 
the  stream  clear  down  in  the  Yosemite 
Valley;  and  the  Indians  believed  that  an 
evil  wind  there  had  been  the  cause  of  some 
fatal  accidents  many  years  ago.  The  word 
Po-ho'-no  means  a  puffing  wind,  and  has 
also  been  translated  "Evil  Wind,"  on  ac- 
count of  the  superstition  above  referred  to. 

LEGEND  OF  THE  LOST  ARROW. 

Tee-hee'-nay  was  a  beautiful  Ah-wah'-nee 
maiden,  said  to  be  the  most  beautiful  of  her 
tribe,  and  she  was  beloved  by  Kos-su'-kah, 
a  strong  and  valiant  young  brave.  Valuable 
presents  had  been  made  to  the  bride's  par- 
ents, and  they  had  given  their  consent  to  an 
early  marriage,  which  was  to  be  celebrated 
by  a  great  feast. 


Photograph  by  Fixke. 

BRIDAL  VEIL  FALL    (PO-HO'-NO), 

940  Feet. 

The  source  of  this  stream  is  supposed  by  the 
Indians  to  be  haunted  by  troubled  spirits, 
which  affect  the  water  along-  its  whole  course. 
The  word  Po-ho'-no  means  a  "puffing-  wind." 


98  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

To  provide  ah  abundance  of  venison  and 
other  meat  for  this  banquet,  Kos-suVkah 
gathered  together  his  young  companions 
and  went  into  the  mountains  in  search  of 
game.  In  order  that  Tee-hea'-nay  might 
know  of  his  welfare  and  the  success  of  the 
hunt,  it  was  agreed  between  the  lovers  that 
at  sunset  Kos-su'kah  should  go  to  the  high 
rock  to  the  east  of  Cho'-lak,*  and  should 
shoot  an  arrow  into  the  Valley,  to  which 
should  be  attached  a  number  of  grouse 
feathers  corresponding  to  the  number  of 
deer  that  had  fallen  before  the  skill  of  the 
hunters. 

At  the  time  appointed  Tee-hee'-nay  went 
near  the  foot  of  the  great  cliff  and  waited, 
with  her  eyes  raised  to  the  towering  rocks 
above,  hoping  with  her  keen  sight  to  see  the 
form  of  her  lover  outlined  against  the  sky, 
but  no  form  could  she  see,  and  no  arrow 
fell  into  the  Valley.  As  darkness  gathered, 
gloomy  forebodings  took  possession  of  her, 
and  she  climbed  part  way  up  the  canyon 
called  Le-ham'-i-teet  because  the  arrow- 
wood  grew  there,  and  finally  she  stood  at 


*  Yosemite  Falls. 

t  Now  known  as  Indian  Canyon. 


MYTHS  AND  LEGENDS.  9» 

the  very  foot  of  the  rocky  wall  which  rose 
to  dizzy  heights  above  her,  and  there  she 
waited  through  the  long  night. 

With  the  first  streak  of  dawn  she  bounded 
swiftly  up  the  rough  canyon,  for  she  was 
fully  convinced  that  some  terrible  fate  had 
overtaken  the  brave  Kos-su'-kah,  and  soon 
she  stood  upon  the  lofty  summit,*  where 
she  found  her  lover's  footsteps  leading  to- 
wards the  edge  of  the  precipice.  Drawing 
nearer  she  was  startled  to  find  that  a  por- 
tion of  the  cliff  had  given  way,  and,  upon 
peering  over  the  brink,  what  was  her  hor- 
ror to  discover  the  blood-stained  and  life- 
less body  of  Kos-su'-kah  lying  on  a  rocky 
ledge  far  beneath. 

Summoning  assistance  by  means  of  a  sig- 
nal fire,  which  was  seen  from  the  Valley 
below,  a  rope  was  made  of  sapling  tama- 
racks lashed  firmly  together  with  thongs 
from  one  of  the  deer  that  was  to  have 
furnished  the  marriage  feast,  and  Tee-hee'- 
nay  herself  insisted  on  being  lowered  over 
the  precipice  to  recover  the  body  of  her 
lover.  This  was  at  last  successfully  accom- 
plished, and  when  his  ghastly  form  lay  once 

*  Yosemite  Point. 


100  INDIANS  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

more  upon  the  rocky  summit,  she  threw 
herself  on  his  bosom  and  gave  way  to  a 
passionate  outburst  of  grief . 

Finally  she  became  quiet,  but  when  they 
stooped  to  raise  her  they  found  that  her 
spirit  had  fled  to  join  the  lost  Kos-su'-kah, 
and  that  the  lovers  were  re-united  in  death. 

The  fateful  arrow  that  was  the  cause  of 
so  much  sorrow  could  never  be  found, 
and  the  Indians  believe  that  it  was  taken 
away  by  the  spirits  of  Kos-su'-kah  and 
Tee-hee'-nay.  In  memory  of  them,  and  of 
this  tragedy,  the  slender  spire  of  rock*  that 
rises  heavenward  near  the  top  of  the  cliff  ,at 
this  point  is  known  among  the  Indians  as 
Hum-mo7,  or  the  Lost  Arrow. 


*  Sometimes  called  "The  Devil's  Thumb." 


HINTS  TO  YOSEMITE  VISITORS. 

Secure  stage  seats  in  advance. 

Take  only  hand  baggage,  unless  for  a 
protracted  visit.  For  a  short  trip,  an  out- 
ing suit  and  two  or  three  waists,  with  a 
change  for  evening  wear,  will  be  found 
sufficient.  The  free  baggage  allowance  on 
the  stage  lines  is  fifty  pounds. 

Men  will  find  flannel  or  negligee  shirts 
the  most  comfortable. 

In  April,  May  and  June  wear  warm  cloth- 
ing and  take  heavy  wraps.  In  July,  August 
and  September  wear  medium  clothing,  with 
light  wraps.  In  October  and  November 
wear  warm  clothing,  with  heavy  wraps. 
The  nights  are  cool  at  all  seasons. 

Dusters  are  always  advisable,  and  ladies 
should  provide  some  light  head  covering  to 
protect  the  hair  from  dust.  Sun  bonnets 
are  frequently  worn. 

Short  skirts  are  most  convenient. 

Divided  skirts  are  proper  for  trail  trips, 
as  ladies  are  required  to  ride  astride. 


102  APPENDIX. 

Heavy  denim  for  skirt  and  bloomers  is  very 
satisfactory.  Such  skirts  can  be  hired  in 
the  Valley. 

Waists  of  soft  material  and  neutral 
shades  are  appropriate.  Avoid  white. 

Something  absolutely  soft  for  neckwear 
will  be  found  a  great  comfort,  both  by  men 
and  women. 

Leggings,  stout,  comfortable  shoes,  and 
heavy,  loose  gloves,  will  be  found  very 
serviceable. 

A  soft  felt  hat  is  preferable  to  straw.  One 
that  will  shade  the  eyes  is  best.  A  cloth 
traveling  cap  is  the  worst  thing  to  wear. 

Smoked  glasses  will  sometimes  save  the 
wearer  a  headache. 

Except  in  April,  May  and  November,  an 
umbrella  is  apt  to  be  a  useless  encumbrance. 

If  the  skin  is  sensitive,  and  one  wishes  to 
avoid  painful  sunburn,  the  use  of  a  pure 
cream  and  soft  cloth  is  preferable  to  water, 
and  far  more  efficacious. 

A  week  is  the  shortest  time  that  should 
be  allowed  for  a  trip  to  Yosemite.  Two 
weeks  are  better.  The  grandeur  of  the 
Valley  cannot  be  fully  appreciated  in  a  few 
days. 


APPENDIX.  103 

Those  not  accustomed  to  stagiiig  or  moun- 
tain climbing  should  make  some  allowance 
in  their  itineraries  for  rest.  Many  visitors 
spoil  their  pleasure  by  getting  too  tired. 

Take  a  little  more  money  than  you  think 
will  be  needed.  You  may  want  to  prolong 
your  stay. 

Hunting,  or  the  possession  of  firearms,  is 
not  permitted  in  the  Yosemite  National 
Park.  Fishing  is  allowed,  and  in  June  and 
July  an  expert  angler  is  likely  to  be  well 
rewarded.  Bods  and  tackle  may  be  hired 
in  the  Valley. 

There  is  no  hardship,  risk  or  danger  in 
any  part  of  the  Yosemite  trip.  Many  old 
people  and  children  visit  the  Valley  with- 
out difficulty. 

A  knowledge  -of  horsemanship  is  not 
needed  for  going  on  the  trails.  The  most 
timid  people  make  the  trips  with  enjoy- 
ment. Some  of  the  finest  views  can  only 
be  obtained  in  this  way. 

There  is  a  laundry  in  the  Valley. 

There  is  a  barber  shop. 

There  is  a  post  office,  telegraph  and  ex- 
press. 


104  APPENDIX. 

There  is  a  general  store  and  places  for 
the  sale  of  photographs,  curios  and  Indian 
work. 

Treat  the  Indians  with  courtesy  and  con- 
sideration, if  you  expect  similar  treatment 
from  them.  Do  not  expect  them  to  pose  for 
you  for  nothing.  They  are  asked  to  do  it 
hundreds  of  times  every  summer,  and  are 
entitled  to  payment  for  their  trouble. 

Kodak  films  and  plates  can  be  obtained 
in  the  Valley. 

Developing  and  printing  are  done  in  the 
Valley. 

TAKE  YOUR  CAMERA. 


APPENDIX. 


105 


OFFICIAL   TABLE   OF   DISTANCES  AND  LIVERY 
CHARGES. 

The  following  are  the  legal  rates  for 
transportation  of  tourists  in  and  about  the 
Yosemite  Valley : 


CARRIAGES. 


FROM  HOTELS  OF  PUBLIC 
CAMPS,  AND  RETURN. 

A 

10     H 

<D  <D~ 

(H 

0  ^    ' 

fj 

FH 

°  cc 

+J  73   O 

'|S| 

^  «H    O 

To  Cascades,  Yosemite  and 
Bridal  Veil  Falls  

Miles 
Ifi  00 

Each 
Person 

$  1.50 

Each 
Person 

$  2,00 

To   Mirror   Lake 

^  89 

1.00' 

1  00 

To   River   View   and   Bridal 
Veil    Falls  

10  41 

1  00 

1  50 

To  New  Inspiration  Point.  . 
To  Happy  Isles         .        .... 

14.38 

4  00 

2.00 
•    50 

2.50 
1  00 

To  Yosemite  Falls  

3  00 

50 

75 

Continued  on  next  page. 


106 


APPENDIX. 


SADDLE    HORSES. 


Q 

t* 

ctf  ; 

|| 

FROM  HOTELS  OF  PUBLIC 

^   £ 

o>  <D" 

cut 

CAMPS,  AND  RETURN. 

*£? 
£§g 

sl. 

O   02 
«H    0! 
0 

"-£    JQ     O 

+->  P-l    ^ 

-t->  1-1    3 

S5£ 

tf  oil 

«o£ 

Miles 

Each 

Each 

Person 

Person 

To  Vernal  and  Nevada  Falls 

10.90 

$  2.50 

$-3.00 

To  Yosemite  Falls  and  Eagle 

Peak 

1  Q  1  Q 

3nn 

3nn 

To   Glacier   Point   and    Sen- 

lo. lo 

.UU 

.UU 

tinel   Dome  

ni4 

^  no 

^  00 

To  Yosemite"  Point 

.  i'l 

10  00 

O.  UU 
O    CQ 

O   UU 

^  00 

To  Eagle  Peak  

JLU.  UU 

13.00 

3.00 

O.  UU 

3.00 

To  Vernal  and  Nevada  Falls 

and    Glacier    Point    (Con- 

tinuous Trip) 

1  Q  99 

4(\f\ 

5  fin 

To    Glacier    Point,    Sentinel 

,  UU 

.UU 

Dome  and  Fissures  

14  00 

Q   rn 

Q   7^ 

To  Old  Inspiration  Point  and 

-Lrr.  UU 

' 

' 

Stanford  Point  

16.00 

4.00 

4.00 

To  Vernal  and  Nevada  Falls 

and  Cloud's  Rest     (Same 

Day) 

22.00 

4.00 

5.00 

Charges   for  Guide    (Includ- 

ing Horse)  When  Furnished 

Free 

3.00 

1.  Trips  other  than  those  above  specified  shall  be 
subject  to  special  arrangements  between  the  parties 
and  the  stables. 

2.  Any  excess  of  the  above  rates,  as  well  as  any 
extortion,   incivility,   misrepresentation,   or  riding  of 
unsafe  animals,  should  be  reported  to  the  Superin- 
tendent's office. 

3.  All  distances  are  estimated  from  the  Superin- 
tendent's office. 


APPENDIX.  107 

SUPPLEMENTARY  TABLE  OP  DISTANCES. 

FKOM  SUPERINTENDENT'S  OFFICE.  i 

Bridal   Veil   Falls 4 

Yosemite  Falls,  base % 

Upper  Yosemite  Falls,  base 2% 

Upper  Yosemite  Falls,  top 4*4 

Little  Yosemite  Valley 8 

Glacier  Point   (short  trail) , 4^ 

Glacier  Point  (via  Nevada  Falls) , 14 ^ 

Cascades    8 


INTERPRETATION    OF   INDIAN   NAMES. 

The  Indians  had  names  for  all  the  prom- 
inent features  of  the  Yosemite  Valley,  and 
these  have  been  variously  translated  (some- 
times with  considerable  poetic  license),  and 
variously  spelled.  The  translations  given 
below  are  as  literal  as  possible,  without 
embellishment,  and  are  believed  to  be  fairly 
accurate.  The  spelling  adopted  is  such  as 
best  indicates  the  pronunciation. 

The  English  names,  by  which  the  falls  and 
peaks  are  commonly  known,  bear  no  rela- 
tion to  the  Indian  names,  but  were  be- 
stowed by  the  soldiers  of  the  Mariposa 


108  APPENDIX. 

Battalion  at  the  time  the  Valley  was  dis- 
covered.    The  appropriateness  and  good 
taste  of  most  of  them  are  due  to  Dr.  L.  H. 
Bunnell,  the  surgeon  of  the  expedition. 
AH-WAH'-NEE  (original  name  of  Yosemite 

Valley) — "Deep  grassy  valley." 
YO-SEM'-I-TE — "Full-grown  grizzly  bear." 
PO-HO'-NO—     (Bridal  Veil)  --"A  puffing 

wind. ' ? 

LOI'-YA  (The  Sentinel) — "A  signal  sta- 
tion." 

CHO'-LACK  (Yosemite  Falls)— "The  falls." 
CHO-KO'-NI  (Eoyal  Arches) — "Canopy    of 
baby   basket."     Strictly   speaking,   this 
name  applies  only  to  a  deep  alcove  near 
the  top  of  this  cliff. 
Yo- WEI'- YEE  ( Nevada )  — ' i  Twisting. ' ' 
TO-TAU-KON-NU'-LA   (El   Capitan) — Named 
from  the  To-tau'-kons,  or  cranes,  which 
used  to  make  their  nests  in  a  meadow 
near  the  top  of  this  rock. 
KU-SO'-KO    (Cathedral  Rock) — Interpreta- 
tion doubtful. 

PU-SEE'-NA  CHUCK'-AH  (Cathedral  Spires) 
— "Pu-see-na"  means  mouse  or  rat,  and 
might  possibly  be  applied  to  a  skirrel. 
"Chuck-ah"  is  a  store  house  or  cache. 


APPENDIX.  109 

WAW-HAW'-KEE  (Three  Brothers) — "Fall- 
ing rocks."  Pom-pom-pa'-sus,  usually 
given  as  the  Indian  name  of  the  Three 
Brothers,  is  the  name  of  a  smaller  rock 
immediately  to  the  West. 

WEI- YO w  ( Mt.  Watkins )  --  "Juniper 
Mountain. ' ' 

TO-KO'-YA  (North  Dome)— "The  Basket." 

TIS-SA'-ACK  (Half  Dome) — A  character  in 
Indian  mythology. 

MAH'-TA  (Cap  of  Liberty) — Said  to  mean 
"Martyr  Mountain." 

PI-WEI'-ACK  (Vernal  Fall) — Said  to  mean 
' '  Sparkling  water. ' ' 

LE-HAM'-I-TEE  (Indian  Canyon)  -  -  "The 
place  of  the  arrow- wood. ' ? 

HUM-MO'  (Devil's  Thumb)— "The  Lost 
Arrow. ' ' 

AH- WEI'-YA  ( Mirror  Lake )  -1 '  Quiet  Water. ' J 

TOO-LOO'-LO-WEI-ACK  (Illillouette  Fall) — In- 
terpretation doubtful. 

WAH'-WO-NAH — "Big  Tree."  (Now  com- 
monly spelled  and  pronounced  Wa-wor- 
na.) 


110  APPENDIX. 


HEIGHTS   OF    YOSEMITE'S    WATERFALLS. 

FEET 

Cascades 700 

Bridal  Veil 940 

Ribbon   3,300 

Sentinel 3,270 

Yosemite  (Upper  1,600  ft.;    Lower  400  ft.) 2,634 

Royal  Arch 2,000 

Vernal    350 

Nevada 700 

Illillouette   500 


YOSEMITE'S  PEAKS  AND  DOMES. 
WITH  ALTITUDES  ABOVE  FLOOR  OF  VALLEY. 

(The  Valley  Floor  is  about  4,000  feet  above 
sea  level.) 

FEET 

Inspiration  Point 1,248 

El  Capitan 3,300 

Cathedral  Rock 2,678 

Cathedral    Spires 1,934 

Royal  Arches (span)  12,000 

The  Sentinel 3,100 

Sentinel    Dome 4,122 

Three  Brothers 3,900 

Eagle    Peak 3,900 

Yosemite   Point 3,L20 

Glacier  Point 3,250 

North    Dome 3,725 

Half  Dome 5,000 

Cap  of  Liberty 3,062 

Union   Point 2,350 

Cloud's    Rest 5,912 

Mt.  Starr  King 5,100 


APPENDIX.  Ill 

NAMES  OF  INDIAN   NUMERALS. 

King-eet'  One 

O-tee'-cat   Two 

Tul-o'-cat Three 

O^e'-sart Four 

Mo'-ho"-cat Five 

Te'-mo"-cat Six 

Te-tow'-ok Seven 

Cow-in'-tuk    Eight 

El'-e"-wok   Nine 

Ne-ah'-jah   Ten 

Larger  numbers  are  expressed  by  combinations  of 
these  numbers. 

INDIAN  WORDS  IN  COMMON  USE. 

Wat-too'  The  Sun 

Co'-ma Moon 

He-a'-mah   Day 

Cow-il'-la    Night 

Tum-aw'-lin    North 

Chu'-muck  South 

He'-home East 

El-o'-win   West 

Het-a-poo'-pa   Cold 

Wool-tut'-tee Hat 

Come'-haw    Burn 

Chum'-haw Dead  or  Die 

Na'-win Up  or  Above 

Hoo'-ya Down  or  Below 

Wool-ar'-nee To  Hunt  or  Look  For 

Took'-hah  To  Kill 

E'-win   Now 

Oo'-haw By  and  By 

Man'-nik   More 

Ut'-tee Much 

Wa'-le-co   Quick 

Now'-tah To  Steal 

Nung'-hah Man 

O'-hock  Woman 

Es-el'-lo    Baby  or  Infant 


112  APPENDIX. 

NAMES  OF  THE  INDIAN  TRIBES  PLACED 

ON  THE 

FRESNO  AND  KINGS  RIVER  RESERVATIONS 
IN  1850  AND  1851. 

Names  of  Tribes —  From — 

Wil-tuk'-um-nees  Tuolumne  River 

Yo-sem'-i-tees Yosemite  Valley 

Po-to-en'-sees  and  Noot'-choos Merced  River 

Chow-cMl'-lies Chowchilla  Valley 

Me'-woos   Fresno  Valley 

Chook-chan'-cies Fresno  and  San  Joaquin  Rivers 

Ho-na'-ches    San  Joaquin  River 

Pit-cal'-chees  and  Tal-an'-chees . . .  San  Joaquin  Valley 

Cas-was'-sees  Fine  Gold  Gulch 

Wah-too'-kees,  Wat'-chees,  No'-to- 

no'-tose  and  We-mel'-chees Kings  River 

Cow-il'-lees  and  Tel-um'-nees Four  Creeks 

Woo'-wells  and  Tal'-chees Tule  Lake 


